Getting a VA loan helped

Jose and Lorena Beltran chose an older three-bedroom house as the place to call home because it is near their jobs and in a well-maintained neighborhood, not far from Disneyland.

“We picked this neighborhood because it was one of the best areas we looked in,” said Lorena.

In July, they bought the 1,029-square-foot house for about $160,000, which Lorena said was a good deal because it has a swimming pool and large front and rear yards. But the house, built in 1954, did need some attention, Lorena said. They replaced the carpeting and painted the interior and exterior. They also plan to remodel the kitchen and redo the landscape, she said.

The couple had been saving for two years to buy their first home. They wanted to take advantage of low interest rates and buy while prices were not too high. Jose, 28, works as a delivery driver for a beer company; Lorena, 25, is a claims adjuster for an automobile insurance company. Buying their home was a little easier because Jose, a U.S. Army veteran who served in the Persian Gulf, received a Veterans Administration loan.

The Beltrans, who have a 4-month-old son and plan to have more children, want to raise their family in their new home.

“We worked hard to get into this house and we want our kids to grow up in this house,” Lorena said.