NJ HOUSEWIFE

NJ HOUSEWIFE

Friday, February 17, 2012

CRUSHED AMERICAN DREAM


     How dare you! How dare you take away my dream.  My American dream of home ownership.  I feel like this is filthy crookedness.  I am young.  My children are toddlers.  Yes, we have a roof over our heads, but I was raised to want more and I want the best of the best for my children.  Don’t I deserve it? I live in a state that ripes me off on taxes.  I live amongst higher education, elite jobs, and solid blue collar work.  So I expect a little more. 
     We have killed ourselves to save for the down payment and we planned to use that money towards a new home.  A new investment towards our future.  However, the bank wants that money.  The real estate market crashed, the banks failed to lend appropriately, and we are the ones who get punished for it.  What we owe is higher than what the market would bare on a sale, so we had a plan….we will rent out our current home and buy a new one with our hard earned savings.  The banks said “no”, “We will not give you a mortgage!” “Pay us what you owe on your current home….Give us all your savings…and then we will give you a mortgage.”  Does NOT sound like a fair deal to me.

     We are being held hostage I say!  It’s a spit in my face from the banks, the government, and the ones “we” put in office.  They want their money now and either we pay it or we sit and wait for the market to come back.  Will it?  How long? How much longer do my boys have to grow with no back yard to play in?  They don’t mind….they are happy and unfazed but it all.  Like they all should be.  But did they see mommy’s tears yesterday? Did they hear mommy and daddy yell at each other in frustration? 
     I kind of knew what to expect.  But my mortgage broker gave me false hope and jumped the gun on telling me we were pre-approved.  So, of course, I found my dream home in one weekend.  I rambled on like an ecstatic little child about it until my husband broke down and put in an offer.  We happily played the negotiating game and she accepted an offer that was perfect for both sides.  I spent the next week fantasizing about what colors we would paint the walls, where new area rugs would go, and most importantly, how glorious our summer would be in our big backyard.  The children could play without me watching every little move in our fenced in oasis while my husband and I lounged on our deck and grilled our very first backyard barbecue.

    I haven’t had a back yard in 13 years (since I moved out of my childhood home and in with my husband).  My parents sold their home and moved away at the same time that I moved out.  And oddly enough, I missed my home more than I missed my parents.  I know a home is what you make it but I just had terrible withdrawal from loosing that house.  I had to almost block the image of it from my memory just to get over it. 
    But now, I led my mind back open to the happiness a new home could bring to me and my family and the call came and my dreams where crushed.  Another hurdle you say? Another obstacle to add to the challenge?  I should have known….nothing great in life ever comes easy.  My children weren’t easy; my husband was not easy, I’m sure my house won’t be easy.  But these are truly the blessings of life.
     And on that note…. the “banks” can go F--- themselves!