Sallie Mae and I have had a long running relationship. It hasn’t been a good one. The Bible says in Romans 13:8, “Owe no man but to love him.” I owe Sallie Mae so much more than love. I owe her a mid-sized house in a middle-class neighborhood. I owe her a luxury car and few years of my salary.
Because I can’t give Sallie Mae all that I owe her immediately, she’s trying to stand in the way of my dreams of home ownership. She’s out to get me.
God showed up and showed out the day I stumbled into my credit union with a hope for a home loan. The loan officer was able to give me just enough money to outright purchase the home I already live in. Great, right? I like my house. It’s a nice house. It’s treated us well over the years.
Debt to income ratio is a real thing. After my credit score, it was the second factor my loan officer considered. She smiled… and then noticed my hefty stack of student loans. She immediately stopped smiling.
I’m thankful for my home. An outright mortgage will save me lots of money per month, more money to pay Sallie with, but what strikes me as odd, is how I never thought going to college would hold me back in any way. I thought it would propel me forward. And it sort of did, except it propelled me forward with an unforeseen weight on my back. And they don’t advertise those weights in those cool college brochures.
I’m thankful, even with the discouraging debt ratio, even with the delays and possibly too high hopes. My credit may fail, but God never does. Plus, God promised in Deuteronomy 6:10-11, “…to give thee great and goodly cities, which thou buildest not, and houses full of all good things, which thou filledst not…” And I believe God over my credit any day. God can do – even when it comes to home ownership, greater than I can imagine.
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