…just leaves your butt in the air – waiting for a smack!
As I mentioned in my prior post, we planned to only live in our condo (5) years, and then sell higher and move into a house. We purchased at a great price of $375k. (and had to get two loans since we didn’t have cash or relatives to lend a hand – no hand outs we got this.)
During our 5 year plan, we immediately had our 2nd child. THEN, the real estate market tanked, as well as, employment. Like many across the nation, 
we both were laid off from our jobs. (well, that sucked a big, rotten egg.)
And like many of our neighbors, we found ourselves UPSIDE DOWN on our loan. (owing more than the property is worth by several thousands of dollars.) People were just walking away from their properties and relocating further out to Lake Elsinore or out-of-state, like Arizona.
Neither of those ideas appealed to us, and unlike our neighbors, we had two young kids (our son was 4 1/2 years-old and our daughter was 2 1/2 years old) and couldn’t just uproot ourselves and move away from everything. Besides we needed to be close to Orange County or Los Angeles as we needed employment.
We took a beat, and realized we had been there before when our son was first born, we both were laid off then, got back on our feet within a year and got this condo. We can do this and we’ll just ride it out (key words) and keep paying our mortgage until the market returns. We’ll refinance. Fortunately, we both had unemployment checks extended not once, but twice. AND since we were no longer paying for expensive preschool/daycare, I was actually bringing home more money. I didn’t have to work full-time for 2 years! Eventually, the unemployment checks did run out and I had to find a source of income.
To say the least, life certainly didn’t pan out the way we had hoped, from a financial stand point. We might be maxed on credit cards, (yes, plural) but we have a solid marriage. Although during this stressful time, there have been days we wanted to kill each other. BUT there’s no one else we’d rather drive crazy. That’s true love, baby. The kind that makes the heart go bang, bang, bang-bang. (oh, 80’s humor! Love it.)
…stay tuned for more on our relocation journey.
Flip Flops Every day 
Love is putting up with the person who puts up with us – despite all their OBVIOUS flaws… and the hardships that come our way.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Greg, isn’t that phrase called “Wonderfully flawed?” I read that somewhere and thought, how perfect of a phrase. We all wonderfully flawed. Otherwise, we’d be bored out of our mind.
LikeLiked by 1 person
My wife is wonderfully flawed, I am seriously flawed.
LikeLike
So, how’d you get her to marry you?
Were the “serious” hidden? In the garage/barn with the planes and spiders? (like one of our other discussions?)
Or was there an “arrangement” made? She’ll over look, in return for…
LikeLike
She liked my truck.
A good truck can compensate for a lot of serious flaws, especially if you move frequently – but that was years ago, now she keeps me around because I mow the lawn and clear the driveway in winter. I keep her around because she stays away from my lawn tractor and snowblower.
LikeLike
A women that knows her place. Got it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Sometimes I wish that were the case, now our truck is in her name and she won’t let me drive it.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Isn’t there a country song about that?
LikeLike
Wait. People have relatives loan them money to buy a home? Where was I when this was being explained?
LikeLike
RIGHT? We hear these stories all the time. A friend of ours had a townhome just up the street. They asked us first if we wanted to buy from them (because it had 3 bedrooms) for 500k. I started laughing and declined. I asked how they were able to afford relocating and immediately buying a house (when they owe like we do). The husband’s mom and dad, instead of waiting until their death, gave him his “inheritance” early. $100k down payment to get them situated in a new house in Arizona by them (where they retired) and they paid for his sister’s down payment on her house too. WTF?
That’s one story of many we’ve heard from others. My hubby and I looked at our families… yeah, the only thing we inherited was helping them with their bills. There won’t be any money when they die. In fact, we’re hoping they pay for their own funerals in advance (not to be morbid, but we all gotta plan) or we won’t be claiming any bodies from the morgue. Won’t have the money to bury or cremate.
That’s a very sad reality. 😦
LikeLike
I am glad the two of you have a solid relationship and a sense of humor to get you through this ordeal.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Best wishes to you both as you embark on this new phase. Yeah, 2008 certainly had a rippling effect through a lot of people’s lives. I lost my job, too, and when I finally found another one, it was for a pittance of what I had been making. In some ways, it seems like a long time ago, but in others, the whole pitfall from that time still echoes in our life.
LikeLike
No kidding. We can’t (ever) get a savings. My kids will have to figure college on their own. I don’t think we’ll even have retirement $$.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I worry about retirement, too. It seems a ways off, but at the rate time is flying, the time will be here before we know it.
I’ve delayed a lot of milestones that people traditionally reach, such as buying a house or getting married, until I’m more financially secure. But when it comes to saving, it’s definitely a two-steps forward, one-step back proposition.
LikeLike