So Much Has Changed
For four months I’ve been telling myself that I need to post something. And it’s not that I don’t have anything to say. And it certainly isn’t that I haven’t taken photos to tell the story. It’s just that so much has changed, where do I start and where do I find the time?
Ivan, Now a Doctor, Matched
Mid-March, we received notice that Ivan matched to a residency program. He would be a resident family physician at University of Connecticut in Hartford, beginning July. A couple weeks later, he graduated from medical school, magna cum laude and is now an M.D.
Goodbye, Brooklyn
On May 2nd, we moved out of our 2-bedroom apartment in Brooklyn, New York. The next day, the impossible happened — we bought a house in Bristol, Connecticut.
I say that it was impossible because it really wasn’t a simple matter. Not that buying a house ever is. But our situation wasn’t like many others.
- First: We had no significant source of income to provide for a lender to pre-qualify us for a mortgage. Yet we had a staggering amount of debt from medical school. But there is a neat option for newly graduated medical students. It’s called a physician loan and it’s a conventional mortgage that allows the buyer to put down less than the standard 20% and still avoid paying private mortgage insurance. This loan exists because of the almost non-existent default rate for doctors.
- Second: We had less than 45 days to locate, make an offer and close on a house before our current lease ended. Oh, and we had nowhere else to go. So we really needed things to go smoothly.
- Third: The seller’s agent was a problem, routinely avoiding phone calls and not conveying information properly.
- Fourth: The appraisal came back too low.
Somehow, though, it all worked out.
On the morning of May 2nd we packed up all of our possessions into a 15-foot U-Haul. Babe rode with me and Ivan in the truck and Banjo rode with my mom in her SUV. We drove 3-1/2 hours to a Motel 6 in Connecticut (one of the only pet-friendly and affordable hotels available), spent the night and the following morning signed the papers in our attorney’s office. And, just like that, we were homeowners.
7 responses to “And Now, New England”
Congratulations!!
Thank you! It’s really wonderful!
Congratulations to Ivan, and I’m so glad it’s all worked out well for you. It’s always hard work getting to that place.
Thank you! We’re so happy it worked out also.
Awesome! Congratulations! Welcome back! 🙂
Thank you! I’ve been away for so long!
Yes, you have! 🙂