Reflection - Buying a Home

It was around November of 2016 when my wife, Grace, and I started looking at houses. At that time, we didn’t know how long this journey would take us and how difficult it would be. I remembered there would be times where we would look at a dozen houses and come home frustrated because the houses either didn’t met our criteria or was out of our budget. We would get into fights because we weighted house hunting differently. Grace put her heart and soul into house hunting. She wanted the best of the best for us; I on the other hand had the mentality of window shopping.

It didn’t help that the housing market in San Diego was (and still is) getting hot. From the time we started entertaining buying a house to when we actually bought a house, the medium price of a home sold in San Diego jumped from $540k to $610k. It was a seller’s market and my wife and I felt like we were under pressure to submit offers the moment we leave a showing because any decent houses with open house on Friday and often taken by Sunday night.

Months went by and we are still house hunting. Even our loan officer called us up because he has not heard anything from us for a while. I reassured him several times that we are still looking although I had doubts myself. There were times when we decided to call it quits for a while because house hunting was too much emotionally and physically. I still remembered those nights when I would pray and ask if buying a house was a right decision or not.

Fast-forward to November 2017 just a few days before Halloween, Grace I saw a house that was perfect in every way. The price was above our initial budget but the two of us prayed about it and the final decision was that we would submit an offer. Maybe it was God’s way of softening the blow because when we got the news that the buyer went with another offer we were traveling in New Mexico. We were disappointed; it was a house we both liked. But seeing the wonders of Carlsbad Cavern and White Sands National Monument helped balanced our emotions. I remember coming back home from the vacation and going to more open houses the next weekend thinking, “well something never changed”.

But things changed and looking back everything fell into place. God provided for Grace and me in so many ways and his love for us just came wave after wave.

1st Miracle

I don’t know why and I don’t know what gave Grace the idea but she decided to check up on the seller to see if there are any changes to their decision. Maybe it was because she loved the house so much that she wanted to see if there was still some chance. To our surprise, the original buyer opted out and instead of relisting the house the seller decided to negotiate with us directly.

2nd Miracle

Grace and I actually already planned to visit her parents in China for a month. We need to close the deal before Christmas which was 20 days away. We called our loan officer to ask to see if he can do a 14-day close. He laughed after hearing our request. In my mind, I thought that means it was impossible, but he composed himself and said, “I just got off the phone with the seller’s realter and they also need to a fast closure because they need the money for on a house that they just purchased and they want to move into their new house before the holidays.” With both sides agreeing to the 14-day close, the seller accepted our offer.

3rd Miracle

There was so much we had to do and mountains of paper we have to sign. It is a small miracle in itself that both sides got the paperwork done. But one day, my realter, Sam (also my college buddy and best man at my wedding), called me and said that there was an issue. The sellers wanted to keep their stove since they have an industrial style stove that was about $5,000 but, on the document, it noted that the seller would provide a stove. Long story short, we not only got a top of the line stove but also a washer and dryer.

4th Miracle

We closed the deal on 22rd and left for China on the 24th. We didn’t even have time to get the keys from Sam. I asked him to keep the key and told him that we’ll pick them up in a month. For most people leaving an empty house that you just spend your savings on for a whole month would probably be nail baiting but for Grace and me we were blessed. In that month, Sam would swing by the house from time to time to check up on the house and pick up the mails. He even went out of his way and helped me change all the locks.

5th Miracle

Once we settled down in our home, the pressures kicked in. Financially, the monthly bills and payments, our housing expense was almost double the amount compare to when we were renting. Mentally, changes at work left me dissatisfied and drained working 60 plus hours a week. top of that, there was a change at work that added to the pressure (another story for another time). Emotionally, Grace started her evening classes so we barely spend any time together. It was a bit frustrating and I just didn’t have time to really enjoy this new house.

Out of nowhere on a quite Wednesday night early March, I checked my phone before going to sleep and saw that I had three unread texts. (One was from a church friend, one from a college friend and the other from an old coworker) Reading the messages, I felt it was God giving me a clear sign. All of a sudden, I had opportunities and direct referrals. After a few lunch interviews and conversations with Grace, my parents, and God; I turned in my two-week notice. For the whole scenario was unexpected but comical because I always triplicate my experiments at work. Apparently, God does too.

Financially, the small increase in the salary helped brought us back on the positives. Mentally, I started to work in an environment where I have not had a day and enjoy the people and work. And Emotionally, I felt relieved and I actually have weekends to do something now. (I just sleep most weekends but at least I have time to sleep)

Looking Back

Looking back at the journey now, the past 20 months was long and bumpy. But each time when Grace and I faced an obstacle, we witnessed miracles and felt the love that only God could have provided. I personally went in with a desire to buy a house and came out with not only a dream home but a new opportunity working with a passionate group of people and renew spirit to continue to pursuit dreams knowing that I am not alone. And for Grace? At minimum, she got an office space at home to expand her creativity.

 A big thank you to Sam, Tiffany, Agnes, Brian, Min, Ashley, Grace, and my parents for being there.