During the Great Recession many home flippers used their own savings to purchase at then market rate.

But I left the farm and worked in industry, where I earned money from my labor (time --> money) to buy the 2,000 calories a day.I knew that if I saved a portion of my income and invested it in income-producing assets (money --> money), the day would come when the income from those investments would be enough to buy the 2,000 calories a day I need to stay alive (my parents were struggling farmers in what is today the Rust Belt and were always looking for innovative ways to survive financially).

I have spent the last year working two jobs to save money and at the same time improve my credit.

We do not have much in savings for a down payment, however, our friends agreed to sell us the house for well under market value.

Unfortunately, my cash reserves for down payments are gone but I don't want to wait till I save up another 25% that the bank requires for a loan, so here is my plan.  

I work at a large engineering firm making around $64,000/year; I’ve saved up for a couple of years now and have around 40k in savings.

Save up now, make the sacrifices, pay your future self. 

s as well as my mortgage broker, but just figured its worth asking on here to save some time and legwork. 

Then save up money along with the cashflow and pay off that debt asap.

We've been working with Merrimack Savings Bank because we participated in the NH Energy Program and got an insulation grant from the state that MSB sponsors.