COOLIDGE, AZ — Homeownership, often cited as the cornerstone of the American Dream, has become out of reach for many in our community. But that didn’t stop a new homeowner in her late 70s from getting the keys to her own home.
Sherry Yates has lived in her Coolidge home for almost a year now, and there’s still not an inch she would change.
“I love the whole thing, I can’t decide,” she said.
This is mainly because she lived as a renter until she was 77. Now she is a year older, owns her own home, and her only rental agreement is a new outlook on life.
“You know, sometimes I feel like I’m 35,” she said.
Yates moved to Arizona in 2007 and rented an apartment in Glendale where several generations lived under one roof. At one point, twelve people lived with her.
When the landlord sold the house, she was able to find a new rental property in Avondale for a few hundred dollars more.
After a few years, the house was foreclosed and she finally rented an apartment in downtown Phoenix and realized that her constant was change.
“It’s hard to stay in an apartment, and when you have kids and the other person has kids, it’s even harder,” she says.
Adding to the challenge, Yates admitted she didn’t know where to start on the homeownership journey – until she met new Oakwood Homes consultant Beckah Stiasny.
“Buying a home, let alone building one, is a big and scary thing, so we advise you all the way through,” Stiasny said.
Because of bad credit, Yates couldn’t get the loan she needed, so her team helped her get that fixed and then figure out how much she needed to save to make a $12,000 down payment on a $300,000 home.
And now, at 78, she is the proud first owner of a 1,700-square-foot home with four bedrooms, a two-car garage, and enough space to support her 90-plus-year-old mother, her husband, her two children, and more.
She considers her mortgage a privilege.
“I would pay my mortgage before I paid anything,” Yates said.
“This is the American dream, owning your own home. I’m going to cry listening to you,” Stiasny said.
Oakwood Homes services are available in two communities. One is located in Coolidge and another is in Surprise.
