Years ago, when we began this dream of building our own home in the woods of NW MT, we soon became aware of a decision that would have to be made, which would affect many other facets of our life, for decades:
To mortgage, or not to mortgage?
We could build our house little by little, over the course of several years -- even decades (!) -- only as (or if) the cash became available. We'd probably be living in an old single-wide trailer on-site as we built the house piece-by-piece. Perhaps by the time our children had grown and had children of their own, our house would be finished...
-OR-
We could assume a construction loan/mortgage, take on the responsibility of paying it back over the next few decades, and enjoy the privilege of spending those next years in that house with our children, having made not only the house, shoulder-to-shoulder with our dear family and friends -- but also having made many memories, and having given them a crash course (pun not intended) in home construction.
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Now, perhaps I can hear the cries of "go debt-free!" from all the Ramsey-ites. I don't disagree that being debt-free is a blessing. Still, under the circumstances, the mortgage -- and finishing construction in under 1 year -- was the way to go, for us. It was no small feat to bring our family of seven (now eight) from SoCal to NWMT. We did it, in part, to pursue all the things we couldn't afford in the uber-inflated economy of California:
- wide-open spaces
- agricultural pursuits like chickens/bees/high-volume gardening
- no HOA telling us how to use our land
- hunting & trapping wild game on our property
- even the simplest thing of owning a dog, with room for it to run around on.
All these things center on having a warm, safe, dry and secure "home on the range." To be constantly pushing back that dream of a "clean, well-lighted place" would undoubtedly frustrate and exasperate my family (Ephesians 6:4, Proverbs 13:12).
So wisdom was sought after... and received. And then we acted. We secured the most trustworthy General Contractor & Carpenter that the Flathead Valley has to offer, and we are currently pursuing a construction loan. Please keep us in your prayers as we move forward, by faith. I will post as much of the process as as I am able, here on this blog. Thanks for taking the time to read, and may the Lord bless your days, as you trust -- and rest -- in Christ.
