Wisdom for selecting a home

It turns out that one of the men from the Pondside group is actually the
President / CEO of Lafayette Savings Bank! It’s amazing how God works
things out. I gave him a call, he had someone call me and in about 30
minutes this morning, Jen and I were “easily” approved for at least a
$180,000 loan.

This raises the question now of where we should live and what home we
should build/buy. The reason this is a big question is that in Lafayette,
homes are really inexpensive, and we could get a home of over 3000 square
feet with a loan of under $200,000!

So, I’m asking you to pray with us and also to comment on my site here
with your suggestions / opinions about this.

Jen and I are praying about a few key homes that we could build for a
reasonable amount:

The
Leesburg

• $120,000
• 2037 square feet.

The
Coolidge

• 1618 square feet
• $90,000

Elevation

First Floor

Second Floor

The
Taft

• 1737 square feet
• $105,000

Elevation

First Floor

Second Floor

The
Clemson

• 2582 square feet
• $120,000

Elevation

English Cottage Elevation

Floor Plan

The
Townsend

• 2771 square feet
• $130,000

Elevation

Craftsman Elevation

English Manor Elevation

Floor Plan

[The Auburn]

• 3183 square feet
• $135,000

Elevation

Farmhouse Elevation

Southern Classical Elevation

Floor Plan

Our Dilemma

Here’s our dilemma. The Auburn house would be absolutely wonderful both
for our family and for the sake of the new church ministry. There is a
dedicated home office space downstairs by the door, but there is a huge
area upstairs for the kids to play in while the adults are talking or
having a meeting downstairs. However, the house is really big, and Jen
and I are concerned that we might seem to be pretentious by having such a
large house while living off the support of others-who likely have
smaller homes for themselves.

The Others

The Townsend and Clemson houses are really just toned down versions of
the Auburn house. We would enjoy them too, but they both skip the office
(we still aren’t sure we need that), and the Clemson has one less
bedroom.

The Taft and Coolidge houses are both the functional kind of house.
Everything we really need is in these two houses. Jen and I both grew up
in homes without much more than what these two houses have.

And regarding the Leesburg, I just think it looks really good. It’s a
ranch style home (one story), is economical, but we haven’t seen any
floor plans yet.

None of these homes have basements, but one could be added for only
$30,000!

So.

So Jen and I are trying to figure out whether we need to stretch
ourselves a little bit more financially so that we can get a “dream
house” that would be great for both family and for ministry (core group
meetings and larger Bible studies) with the potential downside of people
thinking negatively about us. We are especially concerned about some of
our supporters resenting our apparent affluence.

Or whether we should grab on to one of the more economical and functional
houses, save ourselves some potential concern over money, and avoid the
appearance of materialism to those we are trying to reach.

Pray and Comment.

Please pray for our wisdom in this decision, and please comment or email
me to let us know what you think.