OnPath Credit Union

Sara and her fiance Joey (not pictured) moved to New Orleans about 4 years ago so that she could pursue graduate school in architecture. The couple loved the city so much they tied the knot here and soon after decided it was time for them to own a piece of it. With hopes of owning their first home together, the newlyweds attended a First Time Home buyer's Workshop (FTHB) and purchased their first home. A double converted into a single-family home in an Uptown neighborhood. We sat down with Sara to discuss the couple’s home-buying experience and how ASII First Time Home buying workshop has helped them along the way.

How does it feel to be a homeowner?

It feels great to be homeowners! There are a lot of projects to complete since we purchased a fixer upper, but with my architectural background and the things we’ve learned in the FTHB class we are much more prepared to take on projects rather than going into things blindly.  

What encouraged you to purchase your first home?

We moved here 4 years ago and had been talking about buying a home for about a year. After we got married, we felt New Orleans was really home and we would be here for a long time, so we wanted to prove to ourselves we really wanted to live here. We felt really good about staying in the city and investing in property.  

What was the homebuying process like for you?

We looked at houses in one day, which we probably should have looked at a lot more. We saw one we loved, made an offer and then we found out the seller was going through a bankruptcy situation. We were assured that it wouldn’t slow the purchase process down too much, but it would be a little different than a normal home purchase, and it took a lot longer than we expected. In the end, everything worked out. We were surrounded by a great team and ended up getting what we thought was a pretty good deal on the home.

Do you feel like the FTHB workshop helped you throughout the process?

Yes, it was really nice talking about my husband’s and I finances in the credit counseling session. It helped us better determine some of the important things we were looking for in a new home. It was also nice hearing from the speakers at the workshop and learning about all the people who are involved in the home buying process.  

Would you say your new home is your dream home?  

I would say the home is our dream first home, and it is bigger than what we were looking for and we see ourselves living there a lot longer than we would with an actual first home.

What was the most important thing you took away from the workshop?

I would definitely say meeting Johnathan and Joseph and having the credit counseling session with them. The comfort level that comes from being in a safe space to ask questions, the people we met, like the home inspectors and lenders. A lot of people we wouldn’t have met if it wasn’t for the workshop.

The newly married couple is enjoying their new home, new neighborhood and a mortgage that Is equivalent to what they were paying monthly in rent.