More of the Story...

My last blog post I had mentioned that we were trying to decide whether or not we should move.

We have decided to MOVE!

I wanted to share some of the details and "more of the story!"


We're not sure exactly when we will actually be moving but we've already started the whole process anyway.

Jill and Jerry are going to remodel their basement and we will be living on the main floor.
We will have separate entrances. They will have the downstairs, we will have the upstairs.
The only thing we will be sharing is the driveway.

Let me repeat that - The only thing we will be sharing is the driveway. The reason I wanted to repeat that is because quite a few people think that we're living together. We're not. Yes it's the same house but they are downstairs we are upstairs. Almost like a duplex / apartment.

They are going to remodel the basement to be like a "mother and father suite" with one bedroom, a great room, kitchen, utility room, bathroom, and a storage room.

The upstairs is 3 bedrooms 2 baths, one living room for Josh and I and one living room for the girls, a dining room, kitchen, and sun room.
We'll be using the sun room as a "school room" with the girls desks.

The reason we have decided to move is because we have been behind on our mortgage and don't feel that we'd be able to keep the house even if the bank were to lower the payment. Right now the bank is in the process of seeing if our payment could be lowered so we'll be able to see what they offer BUT right now our mortgage payment is $740. When we move we'll be paying $350ish so we doubt they will drop our payment that low. On top of only paying that much for the new house payment we will be paying half of the rest of the required bills. Half of the electric, Half of the propane, Half of the TV bill, etc. So not only will we save money on a house payment we'll be saving money for the rest of the bills as well. This will help us and help Jill and Jerry as well. They can pay less, we can pay less. They'll have the smaller living space that they want, we'll have a bigger living space for our needs.

Another plus is that Jill and Jerry can keep their land and pool and we can have more land and a pool.

We felt the pros far outweighed any cons. It will be nice to not feel so stressed about how we're going to pay the mortgage every month.

Now the biggest obstacle is trying to figure out how to sell our house. Can we just sell it for what we owe (78,000) or will we have to put it on a short sale. We will be speaking with a realtor tomorrow (Monday) so we're hoping to get that process started asap. We're hoping whatever happens it sells quickly - or at least sells as soon as Jill and Jerry are moved into the basement.

Jill and Jerry have already started cleaning out the basement and once it's all cleared out construction can start. We've been blessed with lots of helpers and we're so thankful for family who have made this whole thing possible. There are not enough words to describe how thankful & blessed we are.

There was lots of - what if's, should we's, what about, do you think it's a good idea, are we making the right choice, but after all the ups and downs / stressing / etc. I really feel this will be the best for our future. I've always wanted approval from my loved ones but some of them would like it if we could keep our house - we just really feel it's best that we move.

Jill has fibromyalgia and her body hurts everyday so for a long time she has wanted a smaller living space but she did not want to loose her yard and pool. The dogs still needed a place to run. Plus family members are neighbors so it's great to keep the house in the family. Plus since we'll be right upstairs if she were to ever need any help we're right there. I can help clean (I'm good at that you know) ;)

They save money, we save money.

We're hoping the process goes smoothly for everyone.
We're excited to get things moved in and we're excited to make their home our home.
They are also excited to get the basement finished.

Please pray for us that all will goes smoothly with MOVING and SELLING.
Much LOVE to all! <3

MOVING?

When Josh and I bought our house in 2008 we were both working full time jobs. So we purchased this home based on the income we had at that time. 

Josh is still working full time but right now I am only cleaning homes (very part time). I am hoping to find more homes to clean but we feel it's best that I do not work full time right now - especially with a nursing baby. Josie will not take a bottle so it is impossible for me to find a job where I would be gone for more than 3 hours at a time. When I'm cleaning I can work around that. 

Some times people say - well you need to do what you need to do to provide for your family so if you need to work full time to pay bills then you need to work full time --- BUT I refuse to work full time and be away from my girls. I would much rather sacrifice some things so that I can be with them as much as possible. 

The only bills we have right now (except phone & TV) are bills that we HAVE to pay (mortgage, cars, insurance, etc). We don't have any credit cards. We do have medical bills that are also not being paid. 

SO to just be blunt - we're behind on our mortgage and haven't made a payment since June. 

I hate saying that or even admitting that. I'm sure there are many ways we could be "better" with our spending/ etc ...BUT this is where we're at. 

SO we have submitted some paperwork to our bank in hopes that maybe our mortgage payment would be less based on our current income but we're not sure what is going to happen with that. 

If they do not lower our mortgage payment there may be other options we could look into BUT right now we're tossing around the idea of selling our house. 

If we sold our house the only way we'd be able to save money is if we moved in with family. 

The idea that we have is ...

Josh's parents (Jill & Jerry) could redo their basement and make it into one bedroom apartment / bathroom / living area / kitchen and then the 5 of us would live upstairs. (3 bedroom, 2 bath, kitchen, living area) Their house it much bigger than our house plus their yard is more than 3 acres and they have a pool.  We would have separate entrances and we wouldn't be sharing anything except the driveway and the yard. Jill and Jerry have no problem with this. Josh and I don't really have a "problem" with it - it's just when we're already on our own ... thinking about having to move back in makes you feel a little "sad".  (Even though we wouldn't be living together). 

If this happened we'd be saving about $4200 a year (we'd be saving more than that but that is what we'd be saving just for the house payment). 

So do we move or do we just wait to see what happens after the bank processes our paperwork? 

It's been a stressful and tough decision. 

We love our location and we love our house so it's hard to think about.

 

On the other hand if we were going to loose our house anyway then moving to their house would be our only option. So should we just do it anyway? Would it be better to save the money in the long run even if our mortgage is lowered? It would be better to be proactive before our house was in foreclosure / etc. 

(not that I'm asking you these questions - just questions that come up in my mind) 

Just not sure what to do? No matter what happens I know God has a plan and will take care of us I'm just hoping the answer is more clear soon so we feel better about it. 

Sometimes I think -- God will provide so that means if we stay in our house he'll make it possible and we won't loose our house...right now I just don't see us coming up with a bunch more money to get caught up and keep up. 

So many thoughts and questions and what if's and unknowns. 

Please pray that an answer would come easily for us to make this a better situation for all involved. 

One day we'll look back and know that whatever happened worked out - it's just stressful thinking about the whole process.  Selling & Moving. 

Like I said on Facebook today - I wish I could just be a kid again but still have my husband and my girlies. 

God is Great so I trust him as always.  

(and side note - again this stress is nothing compared to what others are going through)