Our Story
Our home
We were married in April 2002. Like many young couples starting out, we were full of excitement and plans for our future. Some of those came true, and some didn't pan out at all. We bought our first home just 3 months after we were married. It was a small townhouse in a community outside Boston, where we both worked. It was a perfect first place for us, but then the unexpected happened. Just 5 months later, Mike was laid off from his job. He was determined to find a job with the federal government, which he did, but which required us to sell off our little place and move to Washington DC. We rented an apartment in Northern Virginia and began making friends and putting down roots, but deep down, we both knew we weren't happy in the suburban sprawl of Fairfax County.
Just 18 months after moving to DC, we bought our dream home in Fredericksburg, VA. It was pretty big for the two of us, a lovely split level home with lots of room for a growing family. Mike immediately fulfilled a goal of building his own ham radio shack and had his own office.
Sadly, we were unable to fulfill our dreams of having a family very easily. So we chose adoption. After seven years of marriage and moves, new jobs, and more, we were chosen to adopt Leah and brought her home to Fredericksburg on April 19, 2009. She was just 11 days old. She filled in the blanks and empty spaces in our life just perfectly.
Mike loved our house. He often remarked that it was his dream come true. Because of his disabilities, he had been told he wasn't college material, he wasn't likely to accomplish much, and he really strove to attain an ordinary life like everyone else. Having a family, the respect of his colleagues, a wonderful collection of friends, and a home was a peak achievement for him, and something he never took for granted even one day of his life. Every single morning, without fail, he would send home an email thanking me for making his lunch and telling me he loved us.
Owning the house was sometimes financially draining, but we never missed a single mortgage payment in seven years, until Mike's death. Our mortgage broker in 2005 advised us to divide up our mortgage into an 80/20 loan so we could avoid paying personal mortgage insurance (PMI), which saved us a lot of money.
Just 18 months after moving to DC, we bought our dream home in Fredericksburg, VA. It was pretty big for the two of us, a lovely split level home with lots of room for a growing family. Mike immediately fulfilled a goal of building his own ham radio shack and had his own office.
Sadly, we were unable to fulfill our dreams of having a family very easily. So we chose adoption. After seven years of marriage and moves, new jobs, and more, we were chosen to adopt Leah and brought her home to Fredericksburg on April 19, 2009. She was just 11 days old. She filled in the blanks and empty spaces in our life just perfectly.
Mike loved our house. He often remarked that it was his dream come true. Because of his disabilities, he had been told he wasn't college material, he wasn't likely to accomplish much, and he really strove to attain an ordinary life like everyone else. Having a family, the respect of his colleagues, a wonderful collection of friends, and a home was a peak achievement for him, and something he never took for granted even one day of his life. Every single morning, without fail, he would send home an email thanking me for making his lunch and telling me he loved us.
Owning the house was sometimes financially draining, but we never missed a single mortgage payment in seven years, until Mike's death. Our mortgage broker in 2005 advised us to divide up our mortgage into an 80/20 loan so we could avoid paying personal mortgage insurance (PMI), which saved us a lot of money.
Leah and her daddy, clowning around, March 2012
We are now four months behind and counting. Why?
Well, in the past year, we have experienced a number of financial setbacks. In August 2011, Mike was home alone when an upstairs toilet malfunctioned and overflowed, flooding our downstairs. The insurance company covered the loss, minus our deductible, but when the cleaning crew arrived, they found that the bathroom was full of black mold. This was not covered by the insurance company. The result was that the bathroom had to be gutted, cleaned, and re-built, to the tune of almost $9000.
Just two weeks later, we noticed that our central air wasn't working very well. It was under warranty since we had the unit replaced only 3 years earlier. However, the central air was connected to the furnace, and the problem was that the furnace had kicked off. The replacement cost of a new furnace was $4200.
Shortly thereafter, we needed car repairs totalling $1400, I needed eyeglasses, and my mom's fiance passed away, which required me to be gone for some weeks. When I returned home, I was involved in a car accident. While not at fault, it was still another nail in the coffin.
In March 2012, we determined Mike's hearing aids simply were not allowing him to communicate as effectively as they had been. Our insurance covered half the cost of the hearing aids, but we did wind up having to pay nearly $3000 so that Mike would continue to be able to hear and communicate with his family, colleagues, and friends.
In June, the DC area was hit with a derecho, which caused our roof to leak. The insurance company declined to cover it, stating that their observation was that the roof was not installed correctly. The leaks are now damaging ceilings in three rooms of our house, but I have no way to replace the roof.
Our savings were drained. We had planned for a rainy day, but it not only had rained, it had snowed and sleeted a bit too! We had taken out the loans we were able, and used our tax return this past year to pay off the loans we had accrued. We managed to come through it all with no credit card debt and have worked hard to be responsible with our finances. We cut every single corner we could.
Unfortunately, one of the corners we chose to cut was Mike's life insurance policy. We thought, "Hey! We're young, we won't need this!" Mike died on July 12, 2012, and left just a small amount of money behind in the form of his retirement and a group life policy from the federal government that will leave just 1.5 times his salary. Due to delays in processing, Mike's death certificates were released to me on November16, 2012. So while I am entitled to some benefits, it will still be some weeks before I can see so much as a dime from those benefits. We are now surviving on Social Security survivor benefits, which do not come close to paying our mortgages, much less utilities, food, gas, and basic necessities.
At present, our home is $120,000 underwater, making us ineligible for refinancing. I have applied to both mortgage companies for help with a mortgage modification, and continue to sift through the maze of paperwork in the hopes of having my payments or principle reduced. So far I have failed in such tasks "using ink that properly faxes through" and "submitting the modification request document" and "providing documentation to provide access to tax returns" (who would submit the paperwork for a modification without submitting the actual modification form!? Not only did I fill out the tax return release form, I faxed my tax returns to the company!). I am working with a wonderful financial planner, who tells me not to worry, but the mortgage companies have sent people to our house and call every day looking for money that I am simply not able to give them. It's adding stress to stress to stress.
I have every intention of going back to work, but feel my best bet is to finish my master's degree, which I started a year ago. By the time I am done, Leah will be in school and my day care costs will be significantly less than my salary, which cannot be sad about day care costs versus Social Security income.
It is humbling, to say the least, to step forward and ask for assistance. It has been the most difficult four months for Leah and me since losing Mike. We have the hard work of grieving to do, coupled with the uncertainty of our living and financial situations hanging over our heads. To say that I am anxious and stressed is an understatement.
I would do anything to save my daughter from losing the only house she has ever known, and your generous assistance might be exactly what we need. I appreciate your help in either making a small $1 donation or in forwarding this website on to all your contacts.
Well, in the past year, we have experienced a number of financial setbacks. In August 2011, Mike was home alone when an upstairs toilet malfunctioned and overflowed, flooding our downstairs. The insurance company covered the loss, minus our deductible, but when the cleaning crew arrived, they found that the bathroom was full of black mold. This was not covered by the insurance company. The result was that the bathroom had to be gutted, cleaned, and re-built, to the tune of almost $9000.
Just two weeks later, we noticed that our central air wasn't working very well. It was under warranty since we had the unit replaced only 3 years earlier. However, the central air was connected to the furnace, and the problem was that the furnace had kicked off. The replacement cost of a new furnace was $4200.
Shortly thereafter, we needed car repairs totalling $1400, I needed eyeglasses, and my mom's fiance passed away, which required me to be gone for some weeks. When I returned home, I was involved in a car accident. While not at fault, it was still another nail in the coffin.
In March 2012, we determined Mike's hearing aids simply were not allowing him to communicate as effectively as they had been. Our insurance covered half the cost of the hearing aids, but we did wind up having to pay nearly $3000 so that Mike would continue to be able to hear and communicate with his family, colleagues, and friends.
In June, the DC area was hit with a derecho, which caused our roof to leak. The insurance company declined to cover it, stating that their observation was that the roof was not installed correctly. The leaks are now damaging ceilings in three rooms of our house, but I have no way to replace the roof.
Our savings were drained. We had planned for a rainy day, but it not only had rained, it had snowed and sleeted a bit too! We had taken out the loans we were able, and used our tax return this past year to pay off the loans we had accrued. We managed to come through it all with no credit card debt and have worked hard to be responsible with our finances. We cut every single corner we could.
Unfortunately, one of the corners we chose to cut was Mike's life insurance policy. We thought, "Hey! We're young, we won't need this!" Mike died on July 12, 2012, and left just a small amount of money behind in the form of his retirement and a group life policy from the federal government that will leave just 1.5 times his salary. Due to delays in processing, Mike's death certificates were released to me on November16, 2012. So while I am entitled to some benefits, it will still be some weeks before I can see so much as a dime from those benefits. We are now surviving on Social Security survivor benefits, which do not come close to paying our mortgages, much less utilities, food, gas, and basic necessities.
At present, our home is $120,000 underwater, making us ineligible for refinancing. I have applied to both mortgage companies for help with a mortgage modification, and continue to sift through the maze of paperwork in the hopes of having my payments or principle reduced. So far I have failed in such tasks "using ink that properly faxes through" and "submitting the modification request document" and "providing documentation to provide access to tax returns" (who would submit the paperwork for a modification without submitting the actual modification form!? Not only did I fill out the tax return release form, I faxed my tax returns to the company!). I am working with a wonderful financial planner, who tells me not to worry, but the mortgage companies have sent people to our house and call every day looking for money that I am simply not able to give them. It's adding stress to stress to stress.
I have every intention of going back to work, but feel my best bet is to finish my master's degree, which I started a year ago. By the time I am done, Leah will be in school and my day care costs will be significantly less than my salary, which cannot be sad about day care costs versus Social Security income.
It is humbling, to say the least, to step forward and ask for assistance. It has been the most difficult four months for Leah and me since losing Mike. We have the hard work of grieving to do, coupled with the uncertainty of our living and financial situations hanging over our heads. To say that I am anxious and stressed is an understatement.
I would do anything to save my daughter from losing the only house she has ever known, and your generous assistance might be exactly what we need. I appreciate your help in either making a small $1 donation or in forwarding this website on to all your contacts.