As soon as I got bumped out of my cross-country trip (Thank you, Covid!), I started looking for a house to buy. I figured that the housing market would fall apart – which would have made sense with so many people losing their jobs. But as you may have heard, just the opposite happened. The housing market went crazy as everyone started to nest.

For months, I found nothing I liked that I could afford, but I kept searching until I found a gem – an 1880s house in Bath, ME that had been converted into law offices. The 10-room house was in serious need of renovation but it was in a beautiful location along the Kennebec River. With high ceilings and hardwood floors, this beautiful old house would convert nicely into two luxury apartments – one for me to live in, and one to rent out to help keep the monthly mortgage payments low.

My mom offered to go in with me on the deal, but I still needed a mortgage. And according to the mortgage broker, in order to get one, I had to have a job.