Michael Holigan: Nancy Roger's marriage was one of more than a million which ends in divorce every year. Newly single, she rented an apartment, but she longed for her own home.

Nancy Rogers: You have to pinch these dead things off. You just don't have the privacy in an apartment that you do at home and in your own home and you can't do the things to an apartment that you want to do.

MH: Nancy was able to buy a home much more easily than she imagined. Her first step was prequalifying. She learned that on her own income and her divorce settlement she could afford a new home. Her next step was tackling some credit problems.

NR: I got a credit report that had some debts on it that he owed that he had assumed during the divorce. They were his debts and not mine. And what I had to do is I had to get papers from people from these companies and have him say that they were his debts and not mine.

MH: When you meet with a lender bring your full divorce decree. Also, have documentation of child support or alimony payments. If you're receiving either for more than a year that money will count as income. If you're paying child support or alimony it will be counted as debt. Your lender will also need paycheck stubs to verify your income. If you're just in the process of getting a divorce, you can buy a home, but you must be able to carry your debt and your joint debt based on your income alone. The extra steps Nancy took in buying her home were worth the effort. Now she has a place where she can show off her style.

NR: I've always wanted to have a little English cottage and I love French country interior. So, that's what I've tried to create here, is my little English cottage.