Our Strong Tower: April 2012

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Interview with the USDA

We met with the USDA this morning. We went over the terms of our loan and gave them current pay stubs. Stacy, the loan officer for the USDA, was very nice and answered our questions. We have a date set for May 8 at 6 pm to go over escrow paperwork and homeowner insurance. We are scheduled to start building by mid June. We still need approval from the USDA. They are waiting for approval of the HOA. Government red tape-- not fun. All of this could take up to one month. We did get to talk to a few of our future neighbors this morning.

Recently, they have had people out to mow down the weeds and spray the property with round up.

Please pray for us. We hope that they can stick to these dates. We are ready to get started.

Monday, April 16, 2012

Things are Arriving on the Lots

John and I went by the lot on Sunday and were surprised to see that people were mowing down the weeds. Things are starting to arrive on the site. We hope this is a sign that we will be starting soon.

Forms

Tool Shed

Construction Office

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Finally! A Date

Yesterday, we finally got the email we have been waiting on since late February. We have our interview date with the USDA. After the interview, we have three more meetings with self-help housing then we will start building our homes. Yeah! April 24th can not come fast enough.

Monday, April 9, 2012

The Floor Plans

Debbie's Floor Plan 3 bedroom home with an attached garage.

John and Tricia's and Deena's Floor Plan
Both families are building the same four bedroom home with a detached garage.

Home Ownership Program

We are doing a program through a organization that has been building homes in our area for 40 years. The program is designed to help lower income families buy homes. There will be a total of 24 homes built. The homes are divided into two groups. We are in the first group of twelve families. We work together to build all twelve families' homes. By the end of the process we will know our new neighbors very well. We are required to work 40 hours a week, split between two people. We do most of our work on the weekends. There is a contractor working with us to teach us how to build a home. We can not move in until all twelve homes are complete. It usually take one year to build twelve homes. We don't do plumbing, electrical, drywall, or stucco. We are the labor. The labor is our down payment down, sweat equity.

Deena and the Boys

Hi, I am Deena. I have four awesome young men (21, 19, 17, and 12). We have always wanted a home of our own. The place we are in was supposed to be temporary housing sixteen years ago. Now God is giving us a new adventure. We are going to build our own home and eleven others with our new neighbors. And God blesses us with neighbors who we already know! Jacob is my co-builder and my two teenagers will be helping as much as they can. God is always providing
for me when I least expect it. He is so amazing.

Where did this journey start?

For me, Tricia, this journey began with me wanting to own a home and God using this desire to grow my faith and dependence on Him. I have been trying to buy a home for 6 years with my husband, John. We tried many times to buy a home, but God always said no. A year ago, we finally decided to stop our search and learn to be content where God has us. God had different plans for us. In August, we applied for a self-help housing project. In October, we were accepted. I then told our neighbor (for 7 years) and friend Debbie. She applied and was accepted. In January, I told Deena a friend from church. She applied and was accepted. These homes are such a blessing. We sit in awe of what God has given us. We are excited to get started on the homes. God is our strong tower. He will give us the strength to build these homes.