EP: 006 Buying a House is Hard w/ Mortgage Expert John Donlon

In this episode Jim talks with mortgage expert John Donlon about the home buying experience, why it can feel so stressful and how to best prepare for the biggest financial transaction in most of our lives. John has over 20  years of experience, helped thousands of people purchase a home or refinance their existing mortgage and talked thousands more through the process ultimately never leading to a completed loan.   He has seen it all. HERE IS WHAT WE LEARNED:Things not working out, loans failing, homes not being purchased are often times a good thing.Why buying a home so stressful and how to prepare yourself for the journey.What's at stake when buying a home.How to be okay with uncertainty.HELPFUL TIPS: Buying a home or moving takes "100 hours" start to finish when you consider all the moving pieces.  Start Early."It is an emotionally charged process,  a 10/10 on the scale and somewhere along the way you will have failure.  Failure is necessary along the journey, if not you may end up owning a home that just wasn’t meant to be ."Write a mission statement. What do you want out of your home?  Be true to yourself and your mission, stay patient and don't settle.Build a team and build it early.We learn from John that the real estate market is more challenging today than ever before, which requires more preparation than ever.  It is important to keep in mind that it is a competitive process.  Which means that the most competitive offer is the one that offers the lowest risk to the seller."Prepare, give yourself time, build your team, pressure test your why." John describes the home buying experience as if ..."...you are raising your hand and jumping into chaos.  You shouldn't move reactively, make a proactive gameplan and follow it."Jim also shares his experience in buying and selling homes over the years, as well refinancing mortgages.  He describes the stress that came with those transactions and what he learned from it.Listen to your gut!WELLBEING: John is a fan of putting "Permanent Guardrails" around the important and meangingful things in his life.  Hacks if you will, that allow him to stay focused and committed to the things most important to him and his family.  As an example, John has made coffee at home since January of 2019 and has a system in place to make sure it's ready every morning, automatically without having to think about it. FIND HIM @ Are you ready to buy a home ?  Check out your  "Home Ownership Aptitude Score"InstagramLinkedInABOUT JIM:My name is Jim Grace and I am a CFP®️ (Certified Financial Planner) and the Director of Wealth Management at Silver Pine Capital, LLC. a registered investment advisory firm in Medfield, Massachusetts. ​In my spare time I host a podcast and write about Financial Wellness & Wellbeing.  Check out some of my other work @  Modern Financial Wellness . On the website I try to unpack each episode a little further and also spotlight any other resources I think might be helpful to anyone trying to feel better about their finances.Instagram