It doesn't happen by accident.

“Once you have established the goals you want and the price you’re willing to pay, you can ignore the minor hurts, the opponent’s pressure and the temporary failures.”-Vince Lombardi
 
In 9 days, I close on a very special home. And although the house is adorable, the "special" quality of which I speak has nothing to do with the home itself. It is the purchase that's special.
 
I have no overflowing bank account. (Especially after closing next Friday). I have no unique talents to get me through life. No high salary to spend.  No old family money. No sugar daddy. (Although T would love to be one). But I do have a lot of self-discipline when it comes to money.

My goal was to be a millionaire by age 30. Okay...maybe that was a little extreme. And I recognized that very early on. But I scaled back, and made a more attainable goal to own 2 homes by age 30. And my home ownership did not come by accident. I do not have a salary that allows me to wake up on any given morning and go, "Hey! You know what I'm going to do today? Buy a house. Yep. That's what's going to happen."

My first home purchase was a lot easier. I had a real estate license when I was in college and the commissions from the properties I had sold afforded me the opportunity to have more in my savings account than the average 21 yr old. So I added and added to it and had a nice little down payment for the Weinert St. house, which my parents seller-financed and it was all done in no time with a lawyer. (And it's a legit loan. 4% interest rate and all. Actually, I think I need to re-fi with my mom and dad now...). 

Even though I was younger back then, I was much less of a risk-taker and didn't buy the Weinert St. house until I had the down payment I wanted, and still had the emergency fund with which I felt comfortable. Unfortunately, the emergency fund wasn't the $250,000 needed for uninsured cancer treatments! *Sigh* Life will sock it to you sometimes.

I said all that to say this: this home purchase is very different. I have sacrificed much for this one.  

It did not happen by accident.

This time, my down payment was built back up from nothing. There have been some struggles in the last few years that depleted my bank account and had me sometimes choosing between getting to go out with friends or paying a bill. And you know me. I am far too anal retentive to ignore my bills.

Since I had my first bill in my own name, I have NEVER been late on any payment. And I've certainly never missed one altogether. Some of my friends and significant others have gotten frustrated in the past that I passed up on some social engagements in order to have the money for my bills, and the only thing I can say to that is, "but look at my credit score".

It did not happen by accident.

If you don't have many "funds", a high credit score is a prime way to show a lender/backer that although you don't make a ton, you always find a way to pay your bills.

And there have been people who "comment in passing" that it must be nice to pay a mortgage to my parents so it's not that "pressing". I treat my parents like any other lender, and I have never taken advantage of the familial relationship to be late on a payment. Even during chemo and sick days, I always paid everything on time.

It did not happen by accident.

Along with keeping my credit score high, I also worked a lot. A lot a lot. I have my day job here at the accounting firm, and then I would have my organizing or babysitting jobs in the evenings and on the weekends.

There were sacrifices made. It did not happen by accident.

The way I saw it, I could tear up downtown New Braunfels on any given evening and spend about $50, or I could do a job and earn that. Or more. And once I earned the money, why negate it with going out to celebrate that I had made the right decision to work instead of play? Hello Square One. Nice to see you again.

But I didn't choose to go out. So I saved the money.

It did not happen by accident.

So to me, this second home purchase is not just a little bit exciting. It's a whole lot of exciting, because there's nothing more rewarding than knowing every "sacrifice" you made along the way got you to exactly where you wanted to be. And it's all going to be worth it.

It's nice to be "present in the present", but it's also vital to think ahead and see the bigger picture for the future.

My bigger picture includes the hope for financial security. Once I received the clear results of my one-year scan, I knew it was time to take the leap of purchasing another property that could help me reach my goal of that financial security I want so badly.

I hope this blog entry doesn't sound like I think I know everything about how to be successful. That would be comical. I just prefer to be very open about my life journey and spread the lessons I've learned so far. Because believe me, I've learned some of them the hardest. way. possible.

What I do hope any readers take from this, is the fact that there are no "small" successes. Every success is just that. A full-on, true-blue success, and we should remain motivated by each and every one because that's how we're going to stay on target and grow in the direction of our choosing.

It doesn't happen by accident.