PRG

Laura and I are in the middle of buying our first home right now! We started the process last May by taking  the all-day PRG homebuyer workshop that, though long, was very comprehensive and included some good info from a lender and 2 real estate agents. Needless to say, Laura and I left feeling very confident in our ability to acquire and retain a home given our ability to budget and plan well for the future. Well, our lives took a few unexpected turns as you may or may not know...

First, a little background on PRG: The organization started in the 1970s as the Powderhorn Residents Group, a group of local residents focused on ensuring more affordable, resident-controlled housing in the neighborhood. It has since broadened to be a housing development and education center promoting neighborhood stability and resident self-sufficiency. More at their website.

Well, In October of last year I found another job, Laura had been working as a first-year teacher for a few months, we decided to start thinking about the prospects of a buying a home again. We started by assessing our finances, went to a few open-houses, and decided to take the next step to better understanding our ability to get a house.

At the beginning of January of this year, Laura and I had a one-on-one education session with a PRG representative who took the time to look at a huge (at least 2 inches thick) stack of our financial documents to determine whether or not we should continue looking. Well, we got the go-ahead and found that taking the homebuyer workshop first was something that most people do not do, and only do because it's a requirement for FHA loans. We have since acquired our lender and real estate agent and on our way to hopefully finding our dream home.

More to come!