It took only one look for Eric and Rachel Luna to know which home they wanted to buy.
But it still wasn’t a quick process. The couple considered buying before their June 2010 wedding, hoping to take advantage of the federal tax credit. The timing wasn’t right, with the wedding on the way and concerns about the economy and jobs, so they waited.
Eric, 26, who works in sales for Atlanta Paper & Supplies, and Rachel, 24, an elementary school teacher, chatted about the government-owned foreclosure they purchased in Kennesaw.
Q: Were you familiar with Cobb County?
A: Eric: I grew up in Marietta.
Rachel: I've lived here for about 10 years. We were renting an apartment in Kennesaw.
Q: What was a priority when you started your search?
A: Eric: We wanted to be in a good neighborhood where you could meet people, with tennis courts and a pool. We wanted to have families in the neighborhood and other features such as a fenced-in yard. We knew we could make the house what we wanted to make it.
Q: How did you know you would use the amenities?
A: Eric: I play in ALTA (Atlanta Lawn Tennis Association). They have 11 tennis courts here and a bunch of teams. That was an important thing, for me, for a neighborhood to have.
Rachel: The pool was really nice, and Legacy Park itself is very unique. They have 10 neighborhoods in here all together. It feels like a community in here. We were excited to get into the neighborhood.
Q: How did the process of bidding for the home work?
A: Eric: We saw the house on a Saturday. The bidding was opened up to owner occupants first before investors. We were right at the deadline for owner occupants. We put our bid (a couple of days later) through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development website. We knew the following day that it was accepted (the price was $144,000, and most of their closing costs were paid). It was fast and furious.
Rachel: You still worry about the home prices dropping, but we felt like it was such a good deal and we just couldn't pass it up. We hope when it's time to sell our house that we've made a good investment.
Q: What did you immediately want to change?
A: Rachel: Our biggest issues were we wanted to change out the fixtures and paint.
It felt like every room was a different color. The master bedroom was green, and the master bath was peach. The other bathroom was purple.
Q: It has four bedrooms, so how are you using the space?
A: Eric: It is a lot of space. We haven't completely planned out how we're using the additional bedrooms yet. I'll use one as an office.
Rachel: Right now our dogs [Toby and Heidi] are using one.
Q: What advice do you have for buyers?
A: Eric: A home warranty has been useful for us already. The very first day we moved in, our air conditioning went out. It was a $600-$700 repair, and it already paid for our home warranty. A home warranty is worth every penny.
At a glance
Eric and Rachel Luna’s home, built in 1999 in Kennesaw’s Legacy Park Annandale neighborhood, has four bedrooms, two-and-a-half baths and about 1,860 square feet. The couple, assisted by Carol Benton and Karen Kelley with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, purchased it in May. Homes are listed from $175,000 to $244,000.
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