12/10/04

You know how when you’re young and naïve, with your life in front of you? When your head is full of the possibilities of the future and your dreams are before your eyes? That was me a few months back. And then I woke up to my worst nightmare. My husband and I had just gotten married. We were still in that blissful state where life was perfect and nothing could go wrong. We bought a beautiful house in a historic district here in Phoenix. It needed a lot of work, but we were going to fix it up together. I had just gotten pregnant, but then was horrified when I had a miscarriage. I became very depressed. To top it off, my husband couldn’t handle things, so he just took off. I became even more depressed. With only one income to survive on and my world shattered around me, I stopped making payments on my home. The next thing I knew, my home was in foreclosure. I didn’t know what to do or where to turn. Unfortunately, I listened to a friend who said I should have a realtor sell my house. What a waste of time that was. The realtor tells me that it would take at least $20,000 to make my home presentable. Right! Where was I going to come up with that? Anyway, I hired the realtor. She attempted to negotiate with the bank to get them to agree to sell the house for less than what we owed. While that may have helped, I was told I would still be responsible for the difference. So that was a “no go.” Just when I was pulling out my hair trying to figure what to do next, I find this doorhanger on my door. The piece from WeBuyHomes stood out due to its vibrant color, powerful message and I just felt right about it. I felt like it was speaking directly to me. I don’t know why this piece grabbed my attention out of the hundreds of other junk mail offers, wanting to “buy my house fast, all cash.”

So, I was prompted to call. I set up a time to meet with a company representative.I met with Susan who told me she understood what I was going through. She explained that she, too, had gone through foreclosure. Her house was foreclosed on several days after her husband passed away suddenly during an ice-hockey tournament. They had me sign a paper authorizing them to negotiate directly with my bank. So, Art goes back to the bank and was able to negotiate a lower price. But, he was able to get a signed waiver exempting me of liability for the balance owed, which my realtor wasn’t able to do. That was the first miracle of many to come. Shortly afterwards, Art buys my house, and gets me out from under my heavy burden. And can you believe it, when it closed, he gave me a sizeable bit of cash to boot. I was ecstatic! But that’s not all. Art showed me how to avoid getting a Foreclosure on my credit and coached me not to file for bankruptcy, contrary to the faulty advice given to me by my ex-realtor. Right now Art is helping me to restore my credit. Very soon, I will be able to buy another house, on my own.

You know, it’s funny if you think about it. Art made a lot of money on my house, but he deserved it, and I’m happy he did. The house needed a lot of work and his crews put in a lot of time and effort to get it back up to par. Art took me by the place a little while ago, after it was finished. I was amazed at the transformation. It was gorgeous. I couldn’t believe that it was the same house I had lived in.

What impressed me most was not that what Art said he would do, he did, nor was it his generosity, or the patience he had in moving me through this traumatic time. It was his kind, giving heart. Usually that’s something reserved only for full-time religious people, like a rabbi, priest or minister.

All I can say is thanks, Art. I couldn’t have done it without you. And I certainly don’t know where I’d be now, if you hadn’t come along.

Jordan D