Goggins Family Celebrates First Year of Homeownership

“After living in an apartment for three years and watching the rent go up year after year, we knew it was time — not just to move out, but to move forward into a home of our own,” said Desiree Goggins, who works in production/manufacturing. “The next four months were all about building our credit and improving our credit mix. After that, we spent a month narrowing down homes online, ruling out anything that didn’t meet our needs.”

The Gadsden family credits their Realtor, Austin Matthews of eXp Realty, with helping them find the home that fit.

“Once we hired our Realtor, he immediately showed us what would become our dream home. We kept looking, just to be sure — but our hearts kept coming back to that one.

When the seller accepted our offer, we were absolutely ecstatic!”

Loan officer Gabe Crain of First Federal Bank ensured the Goggins met all the qualifications for a First Step loan.

“August 17, 2025, will mark one year since we stepped into homeownership,” said Desiree. “I will forever be grateful for the AHFA program — thank you!”