Take This House & Shove It!

When George and I met, I was fresh out the military, and he had just been reactivated from the US Marine Corps. We were under no pretenses about great credit scores and bills when dating because we understood, SHQWITM (Stuff Happens Quicker When In The Military). Not to say that being a federal government employee isn't a wonderful duty to our country.... okay I can't even finish the sentence it sucks. I wasted so much time in the Air Force at the end of the pay period I almost felt guilty to take a paycheck.... I said almost! George has been screwed over so many times it's ridiculous. He's been in for almost 20 years, so with the ranking of an E-8 (Master Sergeant) he should be well taken care of.

Prior to meeting each other, we led great lives. He had a profitable business in Georgia, had purchased a home, life was great. I myself had just had Dorian, was attempting to adopt a 2 year old girl (that didn't work out) and had a great job with excellent benefits for myself and dependents. After running into some medical bills and legal issues concerning the adoptive child, my funds were depleted and I turned to the Air Force. By the time I left for Basic Military Training, I had worked all my problems out, but was devoted to serving in the USAF. Once completed with my training, I was told my recruiter had not filled out the proper paperwork for my MOS, and I would be given one and assigned to an oversees unit. As a single parent this would have been difficult. Due to stress I developed some physical problems and they signed paperwork for me to go home, or if I wanted to stay in sign a waiver that stated they were not physically responsible for me and I could stay (I later found out the waiver was a fraud, but they were 19,000 over manned and needed to relieve some entry level employees instead of higher ranking officers). I refused to sign, so they put me on the next thing smoking back to CA.

George, on the other hand was doing great, until he was activated. He was told he was being sent oversees, but then later was told they had given him the wrong information and they were shipping him to CA. Most people who have never had dealings with the government assume you are well compensated for your job. Those of us with real experience know that you earn on average 1/3 less of what you could make as a civilian. George has a bachelors degree in electronic engineering technology, which average makes 80k annually as a civilian, yet in the Marine Corps his annual salary is half of that, with two dependents. So imagine going from having your own lucrative business and job, to active military duty. He paid the house note in GA as long as he could, but with rent and obligations in CA, he could no longer afford to live in two places, and the renters he had were destroying the property and not paying rent. After evicting them, the house was not rent ready, and he couldn't afford to hire a property manager. The house has been vacant and on the market for well over two years now.

So now what? I am an avid researcher. I have one of those irritating personalities where I want to know everything about anything that is of slight interest. I want to be able to drive/fly any vehicle. I want to be able to speak several languages (although language acquisition is extremely difficult the older we get I found as a result our brains.... of course some other book I read about brain development). I was told my first word was "why." So we found an attorney to handle the home with the bank, the banks these days are morons, let's face it. Apparently they foreclosed on the house twice, sold it in auction once, didn't notify us, all while George was on active duty (which there are strict legal rights for military personal away on duty). We have been trying to work with this bank and it comes down to this (as we attempt to purchase property in CA), I have decided to pursue a Deed in Lieu on the property with the bank. It will cost us no more than $2,000, but we will be done with the house and take a smaller ding to the credit than a foreclosure. This is why I love research and learning, the more you know the more you are empowered!! Look it up people, don't allow the bank to have all the information on what they will decide for your property and credit. We will have to wait years if we loose the house in foreclosure, but a Deed in Lieu, gets them off our back, and they will not be able to collect any further money from us if the house doesn't sell for what we owe (which in this market whose home isn't upside down).

There was another great thing that came out of being bed ridden for several weeks, endless researching opportunity! Knowledge is the key to empowerment, stop waiting for extrinsic rewards of empowerment, do it yourself now!