I am a homeowner. Those are four words I never thought I would say just a few weeks shy of my 24th birthday.
As a millennial, there has been a certain level of fear and apprehension surrounding the idea of homeownership, what with our mounds of student debt and love of avocado toast. However, we would soon discover that purchasing our first home wasn’t so out of reach after all.
It all started when my fiancé landed a job at Northrop Grumman as a software engineer fresh out of college. Deciding that the job was well-worth the move from Orlando, we decided that after I graduated from UCF, we would take the leap and head over to the Space Coast. We found a little apartment on the shore of Satellite Beach, and Brevard County felt like home surprisingly quickly.
At the time, we intended to stay renters for quite a while. In fact, we had plans to rent until we were able to build our family home, which of course seemed insanely far off for a couple of twenty-somethings still figuring out the real world.
A year after we moved to Brevard, I got a job in marketing at Morgan Financial. It only took a few months of watching our team place our clients in amazing homes on great mortgage terms before I thought to myself, “Why can’t that be us?”
We spent a little time perusing listings and touring houses before we stumbled across Trasona Cove, a brand-new Viera Builders neighborhood. When I say brand-new, I mean empty lots as far as the eye could see. After seeing other Viera Builders communities, it didn’t take much effort on our part to see the potential for a beautiful place to call home in that endless dirt expanse.
After talking to Joe Harris, my fearless leader and loan officer, he was quickly able to tell us what we could qualify for and the steps we would need to take to make owning our very own home a reality. With such a simple conversation, home ownership was suddenly in reach.
Everything else was an exciting whirlwind. In no time at all, we were pre-approved, chose everything from our flooring to our doorknobs, and stuck our flag in a lot on a cute little cul-de-sac.
Next came the hardest part: the waiting game. However, it only took just over 6 months to build our perfect home, so I certainly can’t complain. Honestly, watching the empty lot turn into an actual house was probably the most incredible part of the process. From dirt to frame, from frame to drywall, from drywall to a home filled with painted walls, granite countertops, and all the other little details that have made it a perfect little house.
Now here we are, a 23-year-old and 27-year-old that can call ourselves the proud owners of this beautiful home.
With that, I want to give a special shout out to a few awesome people:
- Gary Bonnici: Hands-down the best superintendent we could have hoped for. With his charming British accent and unrivaled attention to detail, he truly built our home to the highest standards and with our very best interests in mind. Thank you so much for everything, Gary.
- Debbie Hunter: The sweetest sales manager ever. She and the rest of Viera Builders helped us take care of everything and answered all our questions with lightning speed, no matter how trivial. We can’t thank you enough, Debbie!
- The Morgan Financial Team: Thanks for the amazing work you did on our mortgage. I am so lucky to be part of such a fantastic team. Seeing all the work you all do for our clients, I had no doubt that you would take fantastic care of us and our home.
If you’re in the market for a home, check out our Express Pass, and you’ll be happy in your new home just like me before you know it. Click here to check out the latest with Viera Builders and learn about why choosing a new construction home in Brevard County could be your best bet!