Our journey to homeownership has been…slow and steady. On purpose. Let me start by filling you in on how this all began.

Before I got married, I lived with my parents. Yes, a 25 year old woman — still living at home in the room that she grew up in. And let me tell you, I had NO shame in my game! I was proud to be living under a roof that I didn’t have to pay for. My parents are the coolest people in the world and I enjoy being around them. One of my sisters got married and moved to a different state, and the other one is always traveling so I hardly saw her anyway. I was able to focus on growing my business, not have to worry about any heavy expenses & save my money, and not stress. Fast forward to the end of 2018…

Elliot moved to Indiana and stayed with us until we got married. Don’t worry, he slept in the basement and we weren’t allowed to sleep in the same room until we said “I do.” My parents don’t play that. We continued to live at my parents house until 3 months after we got married. We didn’t mind and it made the transition to getting our own place a little smoother. We were able to focus on Elliot getting a good job in the city and save money. 

Our first home together was of course an apartment. It wasn’t much, but it was perfect for us and we loved it. We always knew that one day we’d be homeowners and build the house of our dreams together — but where we were in life at the time…that dream seemed super out of our reach. We were content with what we had. We conceived Elora the first week of us being in that apartment and later moved to a bigger one with an extra bedroom in the same complex. We didn’t love that one so much. Actually, we hated it lol. I’ll talk about the pros & cons of renting in a moment, but man! Living there was not a great experience. We were able to get out of that lease by the grace of God and our journey to North Carolina began thereafter.

Once we got to NC, our dream of becoming homeowners started to become more & more real. We signed a 12 month lease for the luxury apartment we’re in now (at the time that you’re reading this). The plan was to start our search for our perfect house…or at least start the process of finding/building one. Earlier this year we started browsing, talking to realtors, lenders, and friends/family who are homeowners. We (quickly) discovered that…

1.) Homeownership is not all that it’s hyped up to be. Actually, it’s pretty intense lol.

2.) The market is insane right now (and not in a good way). It is unwise (in our eyes) to purchase.

3.) I want to build instead of buying a home that’s already built.

4.) The house that I really want is very expensive and we need to make more money to make this happen lol.

As a result, we decided to renew our lease here for another 16 months and when that’s up, the plan was to finally purchase. The only problem was that even though this is a 3 bedroom apartment, it’s still not enough space for us as a family. We’ve completely outgrown apartments. Elliot needs his own workspace/man cave, I need a bigger office/studio, Elora needs her own dedicated playroom, we need a backyard, and many other things. I grew discontent in my heart, but I was/am still grateful for this place.

Well…

Y’all know that God works in mysterious ways, right? Let me tell you how *insert testimony service*

One night I was laying in bed watching my shows (like I do every night). The Lord spoke to me and told me to start looking at houses on the Trulia app. So I did. With no strings attached, without expecting anything, without feeling any kind of emotions…I looked. The very first house I came across caught my eye. There were only two photos of it — the front of the house and the backyard. I decided to put my information in, again, without expecting anything. The next day I received an email from the owner asking if we were available to see the house. Of course I said yes because I was curious to see what it looked like on the inside and we went to go see it the next day. When we pulled up, the house was even more gorgeous in person than it was in the photos. My heart dropped, and I literally said the most basic prayer. “Lord, give us favor in Jesus’ name.” We met the owners and they showed us around the house — a gorgeous, 4 bedroom home with a loft, a huge studio office space, a beautiful backyard with a large deck and a garden, and plenty of natural light. I fell in love, but my mind wouldn’t let my heart get attached because I knew my feelings would get hurt lol. After the tour, Elliot and I went off into a corner and talked. Long story short, we both really wanted the house but figured it wouldn’t be on the market for too long because the owner said so, and…I mean…it’s perfect. When we left, we discussed it further on the way back home. He told me that if I really wanted it, then we’d do it. I texted the owners thanking them again for their time and allowing us to tour their beautiful home. 

As we were giving Elora a bath, I noticed that I had a missed call. It was the owner. He left a voicemail telling me to give him a call back. So I did. My heart was literally racing at that point.

He told me that they really liked us and that there was something about us that drew them in. Mind you, there were 5 other families who toured the house before we did. They wanted to offer us first dibs on the home and that they’d take the listing down if we had the security deposit by Monday. They told us that we didn’t even have to pay the first month’s rent. Last night, we signed the lease and our move-in date is set for January. Two minutes after I got off the phone, I received an email notification from Trulia saying that the house was off the market!

Elliot and I both know that this was indeed a God thing and a special plan in His will. We also know that this is another stepping stone for us to become homeowners. I don’t mind the fact that we’re renting this house instead of buying, because…

1. This isn’t necessarily my custom dream home that I truly desire deep down. Although it’s a 4 bedroom home, it’s still not ideal for our growing family in the future. We do have to plan more children and everyone needs their own bedroom lol.

2. The landlords take care of the hefty stuff. If a pipe bursts, that’s on them. If there’s a bug problem, that ain’t our problem. There is no maintenance responsibility. I’m not in the place mentally to handle everything that comes with homeownership. 

3. This gives us more than enough time to focus on our finances, save as much money as we can, and get what we really want.

4. There’s no long-term commitment. 2 years is the perfect amount of time for us to devise a solid plan and put it into action.

I only have 2 reservations which would be the cons: 

1. It’s not OUR house. We don’t own it. So I’m limited in the things that I can do without their approval as far as decor & renovations go. Thankfully, the owners don’t mind if we paint, but we have to paint it back to the original color before we move out.

2. They’re able to raise the rent rate at any given time. And I ain’t even gonna lie…it’s already expensive enough.

Renting is the best option for us at this current time in our lives. We’re extremely grateful that the Lord led us to this house –– regardless of if we’re renting or buying it. It’s ours until our lease is up as far as I can tell. 

Please do not allow the renting vs. buying debate on social media steer you away from doing what’s best for you and your family. Embrace your own process. Embrace the season of life that you’re in currently. Trust in the fact that God’s timing is perfect and so is His plan. Celebrate your rental. Celebrate your purchase. Anything done in God’s will is worth celebrating. 

We’re so excited for this new chapter in our lives and we can’t wait to take you guys with us along the journey. Get ready for all of the home decor content!!! Because it’s coming girl. 

Xo – Riss