Saying Goodbye

After being a homeowner in St. Cloud, FL for over 7 years, we finally got to say goodbye March 11, 2013.  I have to say, I loved my first house.  It had 4 bedrooms, a spacious living area, a large fenced in backyard, a nicely landscaped rocked flower bed, and some nice neighbors.  One of the best things is that I never felt unsafe.  It was the place Josh and I came home to after getting married.  It was Julian's home, where I decorated/painted a beautiful nursery.  It was the home we welcomed our out of town guests to come stay.  But unfortunately, the house became something we didn't want to put our hard earned money into.  Buying a house was suppose to be an investment.  Ownership was suppose to bring us a sense of accomplishment, maybe even a since of security.  The economy ruined all my hope of what I thought homeownership should be.  Yes, everyone was struggling.  Majority of the people I knew were upside down.  But not as upside down as us.  When we were paying well over double of what our house was worth, it discouraged us.  Why should we strive so hard for a house that is now becoming something I don't think is worth the pain and hassle anymore?  After several months of debate, we decided to begin the process of hoping to short sale our home and hire lawyers in November 2011.  Our house was up on the market in May 5, 2012.  We had several offers and luckily signed a contract with one before the end of the month. After months and months of hoping to hear that the bank accepted the offer and we would close soon on the house we will no longer be able to look after... nothing.  I have to tell you, there is a lot of paperwork, a lot of REPETITIOUS paperwork, that goes along with trying to short sale your home.  And boy am I glad we own a fax machine!  Finally on February 20th, 2013, the day I decided to turn off the electricity/water at our old house, we got an email stating the bank accepted the offer and we will be closing within a month~ with full waiver of deficiency!  I thanked God for this blessing that we had been waiting for so long.  And now the wait was over.  I will never forget all the memories we had in our home.  But it's time to make some new ones.