First Time Southern Oregon Home Buyer - Millennial Falcon

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Millennial Becomes Homeowner For 1st Time -Alice's Analysis

Alice Lema: [00:00:00] Well, good afternoon, real estate fans. Alice Lema here, broker John L. Scott with our weekly podcast. And today we jokingly call this the podcast of the Millennial Falcon. We're talking to a first-time home buyer who was a millennial. I'm also happy to introduce my daughter, Melissa Lema. She's our first millennial podcast person.

[00:00:33] Hi Melissa. So, I really appreciate you being willing to talk about your experience, on a podcast, because being a first time home buyer is a tricky thing. And it also happens very randomly. I am so surprised how many first time home buyers had no idea they were going to buy a house and then boom, 45 days later, they have a house.

[00:00:58] And so I just want to give some encouragement and some hardcore education to some other folks out there that might be considering buying a house.

[00:01:09] Melissa Lema: [00:01:09] Yeah, definitely. It's been an interesting journey for me and I was kind of a hardcore renter for many years. You know, from the time I flew the nest or went to college,  I moved to Portland and I lived in the city there for about eight years. And after that, I lived in Denver, Colorado, and other big city and was renting all throughout and, and was moving pretty much every 12 months, sometimes six or eight months. So I lived a lot of different places in a short amount of time, and I was comfortable with that. And it kind of worked for a while.

[00:01:48] Especially as I was changing jobs and, I didn't really have stable work at the time. So it fit my lifestyle in that way. But it was really stressful too. And there were, there were always issues, you know, whether you, just wanted to do something that maybe the landlord wasn't going to allow, including like pets or just lifestyle things, that could make it really hard.

[00:02:16] And then, and then also, you know, there's always the chance that your rent could be raised, or you could have problems with roommates to where suddenly you can't afford it.

[00:02:26] Alice Lema: [00:02:26] A lot of landlords sold. I remember several times you moved because the houses went up for sale.

[00:02:33] Melissa Lema: [00:02:33] Yeah. Sometimes that was the case. Yeah.

[00:02:37] And then, and then there's also just the cost of continually paying security deposits. A lot of times the security deposit would be you know, first and last month's rent and then security deposit. So cost a lot just to get into a rental. And oftentimes you didn't get all, or sometimes any of your security deposit back, depending on, you know, what was happening in the house or if you did have roommates, sometimes there were things that were not being taken care of or, you know, whatever the case may be.

[00:03:10] If you have pets, there could be damage from that. So, not to mention, if you do have pets, you're probably being charged an additional pet rent fee. So it just, yeah, it's been, it's been interesting and I always felt like buying a home was kind of out of reach for me. Something that was kind of oh, maybe way off in the future, I'll be able to afford that.

[00:03:35] Probably when I am ready to settle down or I have a long-term partner or something, to where it's not just my income. But yeah, I was really surprised that that hasn't been the case. I was able to recently buy  a home on my own.

[00:03:51]Alice Lema: [00:03:51] And so this is a very common surprise to people regardless of their age, where the first time home buyer mindset is, I like being a renter because being a renter is a good thing in a lot of life circumstances. We're not saying bad about being a tenant or being a renter, butyou are buying somebody else's house and it's so common that people don't realize that they actually have a good enough score. They have enough job stability.

[00:04:19] They have a good enough ratio of their monthly bills to how much they make. And so in this situation, I think we were all surprised you bought a house, but you were able to just because you had enough job stability, you paid enough of your bills on time that your credit score was okay. And, uh, in some situations, family can donate money and the lenders are okay with that.

[00:04:47] And it's actually not that much. It really isn't. You know, there's a lot of cases where people can buy a house with as little as seven or $8,000 down. A lot of times it's more like 15, but I'm just saying that in certain situations, it's just not as much money as people think.

[00:05:07] Melissa Lema: [00:05:07] Right. Yeah. And the credit score was huge.

[00:05:09] You know I was, was for many years, not comfortable with credit. I didn't really understand it. It felt very overwhelming and it ended up being really important because a couple of years ago I kind of started learning and looking into what the credit score was and how I can build my credit. I didn't have credit cards.

[00:05:29] I had really stayed away from them. So I took out a credit card with my bank. Just one, and started using it and paying it off. And, that is what built my credit. And it got to the point where I did have a good credit score and it ended up being really, really important in the loan approval process.

[00:05:50] So I was really, really happy that I had kind of, without even realizing set myself up for that. So that's probably my best advice for people that are, are maybe just, just looking into this or not sure how it works. Is get comfortable with credit and learn as much as you can and start building it if you haven't already.

[00:06:11] And if you have credit card debts, start really making it a priority to pay it down as much as possible.

[00:06:17] Alice Lema: [00:06:17] Well, no, some credit card debt is good. You just don't want it to be overwhelming. So I guess, you know, my big thing is I just want people to go talk to a lender, even if you don't think you're going to buy a house for five years, go talk to somebody now and find out where you stand.

[00:06:34] And so I guess, Oh, go ahead.

[00:06:38] Melissa Lema: [00:06:38] Sorry. Yeah, no, that's, that's exactly what you told me too. And, it was, you know, maybe summertime last year when I finally did and, and it was right after the, kind of the pandemic and the shutdowns had just.

[00:06:52] Alice Lema: [00:06:52] So what was the, what was the tipping point? What was the moment.

[00:06:56] What happened or what was your thought? I mean, what was the epiphany that made you? Cause we didn't, you know, as your family, we didn't realize you were really going to go look into this, but you did. So what was the tipping point that made you do that?

[00:07:12] Melissa Lema: [00:07:12] Well, you know, I was in the situation as, as you know, very well, but, I had to move home shortly before the pandemic started.

[00:07:22] And so I was living at home for a while and I really, I think that that was the tipping point. I just felt like, okay, I don't want to move around anymore. I've been moving around for so many years. Like I said, every, every six, eight or 12 months. And then I finally moved home back to the Rogue Valley. I was living with you and, it just felt like, okay, I really want my own place now.

[00:07:46] I want to start.

[00:07:47] Alice Lema: [00:07:47] I don't want to live with my mom.

[00:07:49] Melissa Lema: [00:07:49] I don't want to live with my mom.

[00:07:52]Alice Lema: [00:07:52] I can say, didn't quite realize.

[00:07:55] Melissa Lema: [00:07:55] So that way that was the motivation and talking to me about it, you know, and, and we were, we were living in Medford and, in, in that area there. There I was looking for rentals there actually. And because I have dogs, who are not small, and I, that I needed a certain amount of space for them.

[00:08:21] And, you know I wanted to buy something that was in good condition. Because you know, I've kind of finally had hit a point where my career was in a good place. I had stable work and, um, I wanted to make sure that financially I was going to buy something, that was going to be a good investment.

[00:08:45] But honestly, at the time, I wasn't even thinking that far ahead. I was just thinking, you know, I should talk to a lender and get the process started because I thought, you know, it might take a year or two for me to kind of get myself in order and get things figured out. Um, so I was just doing exactly what you suggest that people do, which was having that initial conversation to find out where I stand and then big surprise.

[00:09:13] They said, You know, you can be approved. That was great. Yeah.

[00:09:21] Alice Lema: [00:09:21] Yeah. So, so what was that lender experience like? I mean, what, what were the logistics? I think some people, some people don't understand how easy it is just to send in your stuff so they can find out what your budget is.

[00:09:38] Melissa Lema: [00:09:38] Yeah. Well, you do have to provide, a lot of information, including bank statements, you know, they run your credit.

[00:09:47] They want to look at your job history. They want to know, you know, if you, if you have any other financial obligations, for example, I have student loans. So all of that came into effect and they needed documentation for every little piece of it.

[00:10:05] Alice Lema: [00:10:05] Isn't it shocking!

[00:10:09] Melissa Lema: [00:10:09] Yeah. So they want, they want to find out a lot of information, but, you know, it wasn't, it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. And you know, the lenders are there to help you. They're, they're there to answer your questions. And I talked to more than one. I talked to one person initially, and they kind of said, you know, looking at your work history, you just switched careers because I had at the beginning of 2020, when the pandemic started. I had to be a remote worker versus before hand I was, I was working in massage therapy, but I had been in that field for a couple of years. So. You know, they, they just wanted to give it a little more time for when I had been in the new job. So the first person I talked to said, you know, wait a few more months until you'd been at your current job for, I think at least six months, and then it'll be a little bit easier to approve you.

[00:11:06] Alice Lema: [00:11:06] So, and that was I, I forgot. So you went to more than one lender and the first lender said, wait.  And then how did you end up with yeah, so, okay. So the, so they kind of said, wait, and then what happened?

[00:11:21] Melissa Lema: [00:11:21] And then, you know, I kind of, I just thought, okay, yeah, I'll wait a little while I thought it was still going to be longer than three more months or however long they, they said I should wait.

[00:11:33] It was not too long that they told me to wait. They were just wanting to show a certain amount of, of work history. And, and that shocked me because I thought, you know, that you really needed a solid two years, like in the same job, working for the same employer within the same industry type of thing.

[00:11:51] I thought it was a lot stricter and they really were like, no, we can totally work with you. You know, you've been working in, fifferent industries but consistent. You've been working consistently for the last two years. And that's really what was important was to show that I had had income that was stable.

[00:12:12] And so, yeah, I mean, I waited a few months and then I ended up talking to, a different lender the second time and it just, they ran it super quick. The second person was, I had already had all my information ready to go since I had talked to the first one. So I just kind of forwarded some emails, you know, and sent it along and, it all happened really quickly after that.

[00:12:40] Alice Lema: [00:12:40] And I wanted to do a shout out to Guild mortgage, our friends, Tanya, and Tammy, because we send a lot of first-time home buyer people, and they have a great experience. And, and it's all, you know, usually more positive than negative with the approvals. Like, yes, you can get approved. And if ever somebody can't get approved right then those gals are super good about saying you just have to do A, B and C.

[00:13:04] I see, and then in this much time you can buy a house. So we have an almost a hundred percent, positive reaction on the approval process. So, and we really liked that in our lenders. Plus they're just great gals, but, yeah, so, so then they told you, you could buy a house and, it was  all over town.

[00:13:27] So one of the interesting, side effects of the COVID and the shutdown that I've noticed is that where people decide to live. The location they decided to live in is a lot more fluid now. And our family was a little surprised when you did not stay here with us, but, it was also super exciting to watch you make all these decisions yourself.

[00:13:51] I just wanted to, maybe have you explain to people what that process is like when you're actually looking for a house when you have a budget.

[00:14:00] Melissa Lema: [00:14:00] Yeah. So, I got approved up to $200,000 on my loan. And it felt like all the money in the world to me, but in real estate, that's actually not very much so, but I did end up finding a place or just under that, which is four bedrooms, two bath in great condition, move in ready. I didn't have to do anything to it. Has a yard has a garage. So I got very lucky, with finding this place. But it's, it was perfect for what I needed and for my dogs and everything. So, yeah and I'm, and I'm in Klamath falls and it's one of the most affordable places to buy property in the state of Oregon.

[00:14:47] And I did look at the entire state of Oregon.

[00:14:50] Alice Lema: [00:14:50] Sorry. I didn't know that. Yeah, because it had been worse.

[00:14:57] Melissa Lema: [00:14:57] Yeah,being a remote worker, I did, I did have that privilege of really widening my search and knowing that I would still be able to work.

[00:15:06] Alice Lema: [00:15:06] So tell her, tell everybody how much your payment is your, your mortgage payment, including taxes and insurance.

[00:15:14] Melissa Lema: [00:15:14] Yeah, my mortgage payment and including taxes and insurance is just under $1,100 a month.

[00:15:19]Alice Lema: [00:15:19] Can you believe that and rent, you know, and you have a house with bedrooms and two bathrooms and a garage and a fence and a yard. Yeah. Yeah. So listen up folks, help your millennials, help them get their Falcon off the ground. So what was the, what was the worst part of the whole thing?

[00:15:46] Melissa Lema: Oh, man, for me, the worst part was when we actually went into escrow because I realized, yeah, yeah. I mean, so, well kind of that whole beginning part, I suppose, where you're looking for a place, you know, it was difficult because I, I was trying to stay a little bit closer in to Jackson or Josephine County and because it was sort of a surprise getting approved for anything.

[00:16:17] I immediately started looking online. I went on your website, good website and, You know, and there's a mortgage calculator on your website under each listing. And so I would go on there and I would type in, you know, looking at houses and try to figure out what the payment would be. Cause the payment was really important to me.

[00:16:43] I wanted to make sure that I could afford it. Comfortably, by yourself, by myself. Yeah. Yeah.

[00:16:51] Alice Lema: [00:16:51] Isn't that cool. You're paying own bills and you're buying a house paying for a house by yourself. So no matter what life throws at you, it's like, you're not overextended. That's incredible.

[00:17:03]Melissa Lema: [00:17:03] Yeah. And that, and that was important to me.

[00:17:04] So, you know, I started looking and I was really expecting to find something in either Jackson or Josephine County. And, and I didn't, I didn't find anything that was move in ready or that had, you know, maybe more than two bedrooms and even the two bedrooms were pretty, run down if they were in my price range or a lot of them were not financeable.

[00:17:28] Alice Lema: [00:17:28] Yeah, that's right.

[00:17:31]Melissa Lema: [00:17:31] You know, because there's certain buildings have to be up to a certain code for the mortgage company to say, yes, you can spend our money on this. So that was kind of, kind of hard, you know, cause I kept finding houses that I really liked and then maybe they weren't financeable or they weren't, they just, they had too much wrong with them and I wasn't going to be able to afford to fix it

[00:17:53] Alice Lema: [00:17:53] Plus even then, you know, you have an older house, not that another thing wrong with an older house, but the house was not in good shape. You need to have a lot more money over a much longer period of time. So that's just a different strategy or get a rehabilitation loan, which I guess we could have done. Huh?

[00:18:17] Melissa Lema: [00:18:17] Maybe. Yeah. It's just, you know, that's, that's a lot to take on and then an additional payment and, you know, we, I had a limited amount of savings and it really all went into the down payment.

[00:18:32] I, I didn't have a whole lot of extra, so because I was in that position, I just, I wanted to really make sure I was gonna get a place that needed as little work as possible. And, and that's what I ended up with in Klamath falls, you know, has been a great fit for me. I really like it. And, you know, at the time, I think because of like the pandemic and people trying to move it was, it was really competitive.

[00:19:00] We looked at a few different places. We made an offer in on. I made an offer in on one that was overpriced. I offered more than what they were asking for and I still didn't get it. So you know, it, that was really one of the hardest parts for me is just not knowing if I was if I was going to end up with a place, it felt like there was times when it felt like, oh, this isn't working out.

[00:19:27] Maybe, maybe it's not gonna happen. But you know, then kind of at the last minute, I found the place I'm in now and it all just went very smoothly. We went into escrow, and then that was kind of a different, a different section of time.

[00:19:43] Alice Lema: [00:19:43] And you got a newer, you got a newer house and you've got two bathrooms.

[00:19:46] So thank God you didn't get that other one because it was small. It was old and it only had one potty. So, you know what surprises me about your answer though? Melissa is, I would have predicted that having the appraisal come in low was the worst part. So by the time that happened, you must have been pretty set in the process.

[00:20:12] Cause that was kind of stressful. We had it, wasn't a very big difference, but the seller was a little difficult. If you remember, but yeah. I just think it's interesting that that was not the worst moment for you. I guess I was more worried. Yeah.

[00:20:32]Melissa Lema: [00:20:32] You know, I think, I mean that whole negotiating process where you're in escrow and you're trying to,  kind of seal the deal and figure out, okay.

[00:20:41] Are there things that need to be fixed on the house and is it worth what they're asking for, which is kind of where the approach

[00:20:48] Alice Lema: [00:20:48] Oh, that's right. Because they did not inspect it first. Did they?

[00:20:52] Melissa Lema: [00:20:52] Right. Yeah, no, it had not been inspected until we went into escrow and did our, our own inspection. So they, there were some surprises that they didn't know about.

[00:21:02] They were minor, but, um, you know, it, it had to be some back and forth with like, okay, are you going to fix this? Or is it something I'm going to have to fix that needed to be fixed? Right. Yeah. So that, that was definitely stressful. But yeah, I mean, you know, I think I just, I just, was so happy to kind of have the opportunity to even go through the process.

[00:21:30] And, was all nerve wracking the whole time up until it actually closed and it closed late. It ended up closing days before Christmas and there was snow all over Klamath and it was hard to move the U haul up here, you know, from, was

[00:21:47] Alice Lema: [00:21:47] my friend, Brittany and angelo are listening. I don't just do that to you.

[00:21:51] See, I do it to my own kid, but sometimes that's when you get the best deals, right?

[00:21:57]Melissa Lema: [00:21:57] Yeah, yeah. I guess so. Yeah, so, I mean, there were lots of stressful parts to it, but I think a lot of it was just because I had never done it before. I wasn't familiar and I was learning as I went along. But I feel now way better about if I need to go through that process in the future.

[00:22:19] And I don't have to worry about not having, I mean, a place to be. You know, if I buy something in the future I, I have this home that I'm probably would be selling if I'm buying something in the future. So I'm not going to be rushed. You know, the fact that you can, you know, purchase a place and write into the contract that you need to sell your, the house you're in first I think is, is a really cool thing. And it just gives me the peace of mind that this is my home. And until I choose to move and, and own a different place or whatever, it, I have that security.

[00:23:02] Alice Lema: [00:23:02] Yeah. But you know, what's greatis if you do it right, then you can keep the house you have. And use that as leverage for the next one. And then you always have this, this rental, this passive income, and one of the fun things about buying stuff right now with these ridiculously low rates, you get these low payments. You can have more of a chance of keeping it for your whole life and extreme wealth building can happen in just a period of 10 or 15 years.

[00:23:34] When, when you do this, and it doesn't matter if you're 70 or, or 27, that same six to 15 years thing can work to your advantage depending on how you structure your sale, your purchase, and then also your payment and your employment and all that. So one of the other questions I'm going to ask you is what advice would you give first-time people, people that are never been a homeowner before, what would you tell them?

[00:24:08] Melissa Lema: I think you gotta, you gotta do your research and you have to start learning how this process works. First of all, if you know nothing about it, like I did despite being a real estate agent's daughter, I really didn't, didn't want yeah to know anything about it. I wasn't, you know, imagining that I was gonna buy anything for a very long time.

[00:24:30] So, I didn't look into it, but when I did finally start doing that, it felt way less overwhelming and it felt like, okay, I can break this down into pieces, into steps. I can start on something small. There's no rush. You know, I felt like I was in a rush this last year when I bought the place. Just because I knew that the low, low interest rates going on during the pandemic were a huge opportunity for someone like me. Who, you know, needed to make sure my payment was under a certain amount and within a certain budget.

[00:25:07] But they're probably going to stay pretty low for a while.

[00:25:12] Alice Lema: [00:25:12] and there's still time. We didn't know. Yeah. We just didn't we didn't know that. Yeah.

[00:25:19]Melissa Lema: But you know, for people who are just starting out, like you don't need to feel pressured. You don't need to feel rushed if you're in a situation where you want to start getting ready, just, yeah.

[00:25:29] Let's start that research work on your credit.  Just talk to a lender and find out where you are, like, like you suggested, I think that's the best way to really get like a solid checklist of here's what you do. And and start working on it slowly. It doesn't have to be all at once and you can kind of get your savings going. Make a savings plan.  Talk to your friends and family about it.

[00:25:55] And you know, you, you can totally buy a place with somebody else.

[00:26:00]Alice Lema: [00:26:00] Yeah. Then there's that too. Yeah.

[00:26:02] Melissa Lema: If You're just not able to do it on your own, or you don't want to. Talk to your friends and family about it because you never know maybe that maybe someone can help with the down payment or, or maybe they want to live there with you.

[00:26:18] You know, it feels super, super good to know that, I have more stability in my life now. I'm not going to be moving around a bunch anymore. And I can even provide a place for my loved ones if they need it. Yeah.

[00:26:32]Alice Lema: And that unexpected, benefit is our family is in a situation where we are going to take on by design, but it's, but it's been kind of sudden that we're going to take on elder care, for someone in our family.

[00:26:49] And you're in a position to actually be the point person for that right now. And, and it's just a nice surprise, but it's also very heartwarming and, and very sweet. So when you own your own home, it does create all kinds of other life opportunities, as well as stability and safety, you know, you have that security, so, yeah.

[00:27:13] Melissa Lema: Yeah well and I just wanted to say, I think, you know, this last year, 2020 was a hard year for everybody for a lot of reasons. But particularly with the Almeida fires and just thousands of people across Oregon, not just the Alameda  fire in our area, but all across the state, people lost their homes.

[00:27:35] And it, it was scary for everybody, of course, but I just, you know, you never know what's going to happen. And I think that if you are in a position to start working toward home ownership, if you're in a position to, buy now. It just started to really feel like that was the way to go because you never know what's going to happen.

[00:28:02] And I want to be able to, know that I'm taken care of and that I can help take care of other people, other friends and family, if something sudden in happened in their life too.

[00:28:13]Alice Lema: And you know, you don't have to have the whole down payment is the other thing, what I've noticed. Frequently happens is you'll have the first time home buyer working on it.

[00:28:24] They'll start letting their close friends and family know just that this is what they're doing in their life, how excited they are. And you know, this is their process. And then all of a sudden people come out of the woodwork because now they want to help. Because now they see, you're not just asking for money, you're doing this on your own.

[00:28:41] And, and it's very, very common that people will volunteer to help you because they want to encourage that, that American dream of home ownership. So I just want every first time buyer to feel confident that chances are, they're not going to have to do it on their own. Chances are they're way closer to being ready than they realize.

[00:29:06] And even if you do you have to do it on your own? It's doable.

[00:29:09] Melissa Lema: Yeah. Yeah. Well, it's made a huge difference in my life. I'm really, really thankful. I feel super blessed to be sitting here talking about this right now. And,

[00:29:20]Alice Lema:   It's kind of surreal though, right? I mean, can you believe you own a house? Yeah.

[00:29:25] Melissa Lema: [00:29:25] Well, it's only been a few months since I've lived here and, you know, it's just, it's been really, really emotional being able to kind of like paint and, and make it my own you know, work on the yard, have little projects and things like that. It's just, it feels very good. It feels like, I'm investing in myself and my future and, yeah, they're it's, it's really, it's not quite something you can describe.

[00:30:00] Alice Lema: [00:30:00] We're very proud of you. And a lot of it started with you.

[00:30:04] You had a good enough credit rating. You had a good enough work history. You know, you, you paid your bills on time and that created the environment. For the opportunity of you having some savings, family helping, just low interest. It was just like the perfect storm, but that perfect storm is every day.

[00:30:26] And so I just want people to, to feel good about having that dream and just go talk to a lender. And if you don't have one, you know, get ahold of us because we'll get you to somebody who will help you. And if you're not quite ready, they'll tell you the steps to do. And then all of a sudden,  you're a homeowner.

[00:30:46] And like Melissa was saying it's, it's hard to prepare people for how amazing that is. I mean, do you ever wake up and just have to remind yourself?

[00:30:57] Melissa Lema: [00:30:57] No, no. I mean, I wake up in my house.

[00:31:02]Alice Lema: [00:31:02] Okay. But yeah, it was a good one. Yeah.

[00:31:08] Melissa Lema: No, it's, it's a great feeling though. It's great to know that You know, I'm I, I do feel, feel very secure and, and like I'm, I've invested in my future and, like I can, can really start planning to build my financial wellness as well.

[00:31:29] You know, if I do decide I want to go somewhere else, I'm not tied down here, which is something that I really did worry about. Buying something feel is, and very settled from someone from my perspective has been renting a long time. So, you know, knowing that there is still flexibility in that if I decide I need to move somewhere else, I do have the option of, of turning my home into a rental.

[00:31:57] And then I could live somewhere else if I could afford it and wanted to. So you know, it's, it's just been really eye opening. Definitely changed my perspective and just understanding that this is an integral way that people build wealth in our society. I mean, whether you agree with it or not, whether you like our society or not.

[00:32:27] And I sort of feel like I, I just, I've been really empowered by learning about it and learning what the process is. And I do want other people to know that.

[00:32:39] Alice Lema: What is it, what was it like when you told your friends? Because if you don't mind telling people how old you are, like.

[00:32:46] Melissa Lema: Yeah, I'm I'm in my late twenties. I'm 27 right now.

[00:32:51] Alice Lema: What did you do, any of your friends own houses?

[00:32:54]Melissa Lema: I know a few people my age, who do

[00:32:57] Alice Lema: So do you talk to them? Did you talk to them during the process too. Don't tell anybody they wait?

[00:33:06] Melissa Lema:  I did tell people here and there. But yeah, I mean, I think. As time goes on. And, and more people in my, my group of friends, decide to, to become homeowners, it'll be more of a conversation then. But, I've been talking to them ever since, you know, and I

[00:33:29] Alice Lema: Do, they understand that it's doable for them too?

[00:33:35] Melissa Lema: Yeah. Yeah, I think so. I, you know, the main thing for people my age right now is, is getting stable work. In my opinion. I think that's the main hurdle, especially with COVID going on. There's huge unemployment rates, you know, times are tough. So. It's about putting yourself in a position to be able to have a stable income and just working toward that is that, and

[00:33:58]Alice Lema: [00:33:58] See that, essential service list on the state of Oregon website. If, if you are struggling with work, if you go to that list and look and see if there's something on there that you can do. That will always be your safety net. And it's this whole COVID thing has been very interesting with, tenants because it, it takes kind of a vulnerable population and make them more vulnerable.

[00:34:25] And if you're not an essential worker and who would have even thought that our community would be divided like that to, you matter, and you don't. And so, I mean, I don't mean to put it that way. I don't, and I'm not political. I'm just saying it was just kind of a shock to all of us. So we're just advising, especially our tenant population to go on the state of Oregon website and look at that list to find, you know, new work opportunities that are not going to be jeopardized.

[00:34:52] Cause you shut down. I mean, this is, this is almost May and we're going into shutdown again.

[00:34:58]Melissa Lema: Right? Absolutely. Yeah. And it is, it's just, it's a rollercoaster. I mean, so having a place to live that's secure that's yours can, can mean affordable and affordable. Yeah. It can make all the difference in your life.

[00:35:13] It did for me. I mean, I'm not worried about having to move all the time. So, you know, and you can kind of like put down roots. And, and I just, I, I know that I don't have to move. I get to make the decision I'm in control of that for the most part, you know, as in control, as you can be. So that's a huge, huge weight off my shoulders.

[00:35:35] Alice Lema: Yeah, I am. So we're so proud of you and we, you know, none of this could have happened if you hadn't put yourself in a good position to start with. So, yeah. So Melissa, if you have not called all your friends and given them Tanya's phone number, let's do that because everybody should get pre-qualified.

[00:35:57] Even if you're not going to buy a house right away. Just know where you stand. It's a very good feeling. It's a very secure feeling to know that you have choices in life.

[00:36:07] Melissa Lema: Yeah. And, and it just helps you take charge of your finances in general, which I, and I just want everyone to know that I was not someone who had a good understanding of that.

[00:36:17] I was you know, like I said, I wasn't using credit cards. I wasn't familiar with how that all works. I was just kind of working one job to the next, whatever I felt like part-time, full-time, you know, going back and forth and, and, a lot of people kind of just stay there and it's. It has been such a process for me to learn about how to take care of my financial health too.

[00:36:44] And what that means and what that looks like. And so talking to a lender is a good way to just get on track with all of that, whether you're like you said, whether you're going to buy a house or not. Because if you really don't want to buy a house, that's fine, don't do it. But talk to someone and find out where you stand, because this is kind of, you know, credit and things like that are important. And at some point you may need to draw on that in your life. And you want to be informed.

[00:37:11] Alice Lema: Good advice from our first millennial Falcon. We're always trying to think of names for our podcast. So, yeah. So thank you, Melissa Lema, my daughter, it's very, very generous of you to expose your private financial situation and all this stuff to the world, but it will be very helpful. And we're, we have a campaign starting, with our little real estate group, where we are doing a lot of outreach, especially to, tenants. Because in the state of Oregon, it's dire. it's, it's and it's not getting better, it's getting worse.

[00:37:52] And also there is a lot more wealth building and security if you own a house, but, but we really are, this is like my new soap boxes. We want to reach out to people who may not realize they're in a better position than they are. And, we just, you know, that's just something we want to try to do to help with in the world.

[00:38:09] So that's what we're doing. So if you know any kiddos or you have people sleeping on your couch or you're sleeping on somebody's couch because our family, I could go one way or the other, any given day, right? Well, it used to be anyway, so.

[00:38:32] Yeah. but yeah, uh, please reach out to us. Uh, my number is (541) 301-7980. And I'm around all weekend. Thank you again, Melissa. That really was very sweet for you to reveal all that and in the name of helping the other millennial Falcons.

[00:38:50] Melissa Lema: [00:38:50] Well thank you for having me.

[00:38:52] Alice Lema: [00:38:52] All right. You guys have a great Southern Oregon weekend.

[00:38:55] Bye now.