Sandie: All in the Family

Four years ago, Sandie filed for divorce and bankruptcy. When the dust settled, she was unemployed and in need of a place to live. Despite the cramped quarters, her son offered her a room in his apartment. Today, they both own their own homes after coming to the Community Housing Resource Center for counseling.

In 2008, Sandie saw a mention of our first-time homebuyer education class in the newspaper. She had a good job again, but she left the class feeling discouraged by tightening credit standards. Five months later, her son came to the same class, signed up for counseling and bought a house. “Everything went so smoothly,” said Sandie, “I knew if he could do it, so could I.”

Inspired, Sandie came to another class, and this time she set up an appointment for counseling with our Program Manager, Kevin Gillette. Together they put together a plan to improve her credit score and save for a down payment. The bankruptcy had damaged a lifetime of good credit, but Sandie made headway fast. She completed her savings goal for an Individual Development Account in half the allotted time, and soon she was sitting down with Jennifer Hatch of Evergreen Home Loans to discuss her mortgage options.

Jennifer is one of our Participating Partners and she spoke at the homebuyer class that Sandie attended. Jennifer helped Sandie get approved for an FHA loan and connected her with a realtor to find the right home. “First it was exciting; then it was frustrating,” she remembered. Sandie made offers on seven houses, many of them short sales, but each was eventually turned down. When her daughter in-law paid off one of her credit cards as a birthday gift, she was able to afford a little bit more and found a two bedroom in Washougal that was in her price range.

Sandie recommends the Community Housing Resource Center all the time. Recently she referred someone very special. “I told my granddaughter. She’s engaged, and she and her husband are looking to buy a house.” When she’s ready, we’ll be there to help a third generation of Sandie’s family become a homeowner.

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