June 17, 2016 | by Michael Wilt
Categories: Homeownership, Homes for Texas Heroes, Teachers
In honor of National Homeownership Month, TSAHC is doing a blog series this June highlighting our homeownership programs. This week, we are turning the spotlight to Michelle McDonald, a teacher who lives in the small community of Sanger in North Texas.
She used TSAHC's programs to purchase a home and received a free mortgage payment as part of our Mortgage Free Monday promotion last year. We asked her a few questions about being a new homeowner.
How does it feel to have won a free month’s mortgage payment?
It feels amazing! How many people can say they won a FREE month’s mortgage payment!?!
Is this the first home that you have owned?
Yes, it is.
Who lives in the home with you?
My husband and our three dogs and two cats. It's a pretty full house as you can imagine.
Why is being a homeowner important to you?
It’s important because it is something we can call our own. We take pride in being homeowners. It’s an important milestone, and we are so happy we were able to achieve it.
What do you like the most about being a homeowner?
I love that we aren’t throwing money away every month to a landlord.
How did you learn about TSAHC’s home buyer programs?
I asked our lender if there were any home buyer programs for teachers, and he informed me about TSAHC.
Please describe your experience working with your lender.
Our lender with Bay Equity was absolutely amazing. He made the process smooth and easy. He was available when we needed him, even in the evening hours. He gave us tons of information and broke everything down for us so that we understood all aspects of our mortgage and home buying process.
Did you use a REALTOR® to buy your home? If so, please describe your experience working with your REALTOR®.
Yes. The experience was wonderful. Our REALTOR®, Bob McMurtrey, was incredibly friendly, helpful, and knowledgeable. He showed us a lot of houses, but most importantly he was always honest and gave us great advice.
What home buyer education course did you take prior to purchasing your home? How did the course help you during the home buying process?
I took a course offered by Homebuyer Funds. It was very worthwhile and helped me weigh the pros and cons of owning a house versus renting.
Interested in making the leap into homeownership? TSAHC is hosting webinars every Wednesday in June specifically on the home buying process. You’ll learn the 10 steps to buying a home and receive a tutorial on our down payment assistance and Mortgage Credit Certificate programs. Click here to register.
On the House blog posts are meant to provide general information on various housing-related issues, research and programs. We are not liable for any errors or inaccuracies in the information provided by blog sources. Furthermore, this blog is not legal advice and should not be used as a substitute for legal advice from a licensed professional attorney.
Looking to join a Webinar and was wondering when is the next class.
Hi Valencia,
TSAHC’s next webinar will take place on Wednesday, July 26th at noon.
http://www.tsahc.org/homebuyers-renters/consumer-webinars
Hi I was interested if there is another webinar going on for the month of July?
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If you have a question regarding any of TSAHC's programs, please contact us.
Hi LaKenda, if you’re a REALTOR interested in attending an online training, you can find upcoming events here: https://www.tsahc.org/realtors/training-for-texas-realtors
We also offer periodic live video events on Facebook, where you can ask our homeownership staff any questions you have about our home buyer programs. If you’re interested in those, make sure to like and follow our page at: https://www.facebook.com/TSAHC