My better half and I made one of the biggest purchases of our life last year, we built our dream home! It’s crazy to say that our first home we bought, we were able to build. It’s the American Dream. I would love to share my secrets and tips on how to make a house into a home while not breaking the bank and taking full advantage of financing when it makes sense. I’m also thrilled to be partnering up with Capital One to share some amazing offers they have as well, you might even get a lower rate compared to what other companies might be offering you for debt consolidation or for home projects!

Above is some of the progress photo we took while our home was being built. It was so fun to document the process along the way. During this time is when we would hit up HomeGoods and Home Depot to pick out not only our decor but to upgrade features such as our master bath shower head, our facet in the kitchen and more. I truly enjoyed this process from day 1 and still do today. It’s so much fun finding deals and starting new projects.

I do know that I am looking into turning one of our spare bedroom into a baby room soon and I will be looking into the options that Capital One has to provide. I always say — don’t open more lines of credit with random stores if you still have debt to pay off.  A great feature that Capital One has as well is with a Capital One home equity loan, you can consolidate credit cards, personal loans and more into one fixed monthly payment. By consolidating, you have fewer bills to pay and may even get a lower interest rate than what you’re paying now.

It’s crazy to think that more than half (57 percent) of homeowners in Washington D.C. have not taken out a home equity line of credit or loan, and approximately one in five (21 percent) respondents are unaware of the option to leverage their home’s equity for debt consolidation.

I know sometimes these things can seem confusing, that’s why Capital One has consulates there to help you figure out what would be best for you. Just by visiting capital one home equity, you can get your customized rate offer and estimated loan amount – with no impact to your credit score! Which is huge. No one likes a ding in their credit report. Even begin the application process – it’s simple and there are no burdensome fees.

The feeling of walking into your new home for the first time is priceless.

No one wants to have debt over their shoulders, you should be enjoying the simple moments together in your current or new home. Making memories VS worrying about interest rates and debt.

I couldn’t be happier with our choices and the future only seems brighter now that I know what Capital One has to offer us for the future when we decide to tackle some major projects with our home.

In the meantime I will be enjoying the small decorating projects I have started!

Click here for more information on Capital One’s home equity tools.

I was selected for this opportunity as a member of CLEVER and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.