When We Couldn’t Afford It, God Made a Way — Trusting God’s Provision in the Home Buying Process
- meetgodattheedgeof
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
Today's testimony is brought to you by our Heavenly Father.
Reflection.
Today I felt compelled to share how we were able to purchase the house we are still living in. After years of renting, my wife and I set out to purchase our first home. My dad at the time was working for a mortgage bank as an account executive, so we had some help navigating the process.
As we started looking, we instantly found out that we needed to be ready to move on a house we liked immediately. There was no more casual browsing like I remembered from years prior. If you hesitated, you lost it.
This was about 12 years ago — and if anything, it has only gotten worse since then.
Back then, every house we looked at was priced over value. I felt strongly that we needed to wait for something that was priced correctly. At that time, you could buy a small house or townhome for under 400k. I don’t think that’s even possible anymore.
We drove around and looked at quite a few houses. Each one we were interested in, we got outbid — usually by a cash offer or by someone willing to pay more than the appraisal said it was worth. We even approached the landlord of the house we were renting. Since we knew all the repairs it needed, we thought maybe we could get a deal.
Nope.
They wanted over value too. There was a huge tree branch resting on the roof causing damage, it hadn’t been updated in decades, yet they believed it was worth top dollar.
Needless to say, we were getting discouraged. Maybe we just couldn’t afford a house.
On the other hand, the bank approved us for a loan amount that there was no way we could responsibly afford. I still don’t understand that. If we had simply trusted the approval letter instead of thinking through our real monthly budget, we would have been in serious trouble. That alone was a lesson in discernment.
After months of this cycle, our realtor called and said a house had just hit the market and she wanted to show it to us. We met her there after work. Instantly, I loved it. It was bigger than what we had been looking at — and it was out of our budget by $30–50k.
From everything we had experienced so far, that felt like the nail in the coffin.
After walking through it, our realtor said, “Let’s submit an offer.”
My wife and I talked and came up with the absolute highest amount we could responsibly afford — not what the bank approved, but what we knew we could handle. We submitted it. It was a government-owned home.
Within a day or two, we heard back.
They accepted our offer.
I couldn’t believe it. From what we were told, we were the first offer, and they simply wanted to sell it quickly.
We did it.
Looking back now, I clearly see Trusting God’s Provision in the Home Buying Process wasn’t just a phrase — it was exactly what we were living through. When we were discouraged. When we were outbid. When the numbers didn’t make sense. When the approval amount felt dangerous. God was guiding us.
The payments were affordable. That alone was a gift from our Father.
Later, I found out that my dad had paid money out of his own pocket to buy down our mortgage rate. What an incredible gift. What a picture of provision layered upon provision.
We have been here ever since. So many memories. So much life lived inside these walls.
When the timing is right for the Lord, He truly makes a way where there seems to be no way. Trusting God’s Provision in the Home Buying Process taught me that He is not late. He is not confused by the market. He is not limited by competition.
If He wants you somewhere, He will open the door.
Thank you, Father, for one more day. Amen.
