PrivateMI Makes the Dream of a Better Life Come True
After immigrating to America from Guadalajara, Mexico, Javier and Rose Padilla found themselves squeezed into a second-floor apartment in Vallejo, California so tiny that they had to share a bedroom with their toddler, Ruby.
"It was very small and the neighbors were complaining when Ruby was running or jumping," the couple said. With another child on the way, the Padillas dreamed of buying a home that has more space for their growing family. "We wanted to move to improve our quality of living," the Padillas said in a recent interview. "We wanted for our kids a better place to live, more space, and a back yard were they can play and run without any complaints from the next door neighbor."
But like many aspiring homeowners, the Padillas felt they would never be able to save up enough money to buy a house. "We only had a small saving, plus our tax return," they said. "That was all the money we had."
"We never thought that we could own a house, because it was like a dream that could never come true," the Padillas said.
But the Padilla family's dream did come true, thanks to private mortgage insurance (PrivateMI) that enabled them to buy a house with a smaller down payment than typically required by many lenders.
With private mortgage insurance from PMI Mortgage Insurance Co. of San Francisco, the Padillas were able to buy a house with less money down than they thought they would need. Instead of waiting for years to save enough money for a 20 percent down payment required in many loans, PrivateMI enabled the couple to buy their first house after seven months of checking out their options and looking at homes.
The Padillas love their new home. Not only is it within two blocks of Ruby's school, it is clean and roomy enough to accommodate newborn Xavier, Javier's mom Maria del Refugio and the family's dog Buggy.
Still, like many new homeowners, they have plans to make it even nicer.
"The back yard needs a little work, but it has plenty of space for the kids and the dog to enjoy their freedom; they can play and run around the house without neighbors complaining," the couple said.
Helping families such as the Padillas will be one of the goals of making home ownership a reality for more families, said W. Roger Haughton, CEO of PMI Mortgage Insurance Company and a past president of the Mortgage Insurance Companies of America.
"The key to expanding home ownership is to focus on those people who today are having difficulty buying a home," Haughton said in recent testimony to a U.S. Senate subcommittee. "These groups include minorities, immigrants, low-income people and families living in rural and inner-city areas. One-third of the first-time homebuyers in the coming decade will be immigrants and minorities."
As immigrants, the Padillas feel a special pride in achieving the American dream of homeownership in their new country. But they also appreciate how much owning a home contributes to their quality of life and their family's financial well-being.
"Living in this house means: happiness, peace, freedom and blessing," Rosa and Javier said. "My family, including my Mom, can now live in a peaceful home without wasting money paying rent."