{"id":1812,"date":"2018-04-30T20:42:34","date_gmt":"2018-04-30T20:42:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.himorty.com\/?p=1812"},"modified":"2023-09-17T13:49:53","modified_gmt":"2023-09-17T18:49:53","slug":"first-time-homebuyers-heres-save-payment","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.morty.com\/resources\/money-matters\/first-time-homebuyers-heres-save-payment","title":{"rendered":"First-Time Homebuyers: 7 Ways to Save For Your Down Payment"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Renting isn\u2019t exactly<\/em> flushing your money down the drain, of course. Paying rent gives you somewhere to live and a place to store all your stuff. And that\u2019s important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But unlike renters, homeowners get the benefit of housing while also<\/em> building equity in an asset that adds to their long-term wealth and financial well-being. And in most parts of the country, the average mortgage payment is actually lower than the average rent for a comparable home<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For many, the biggest obstacle to homeownership is saving the money needed for a down payment. With rent to pay, other bills to cover, and a life to live, how exactly is a first-time homebuyer supposed to save thousands or tens-of-thousands of dollars?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We won\u2019t lie: it\u2019s not easy to save for a down payment on a home. But it\u2019s not impossible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Young people, working people, people without trust funds or generous relatives? They become homeowners all the time. If you\u2019re interested in joining them, here are some strategies to consider for saving for a down payment. (Hint: giving up avocado toast is not one of them<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. You May Not Need As Much Money As You Imagine<\/h2>\n\n\n
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You\u2019ve probably heard that you need to put down 20% to buy a house. Your parents probably put down 20% when they bought their home however long ago. But times change. With the average home in America selling for around $250,000<\/a>, a down payment of 20% would be $50,000 \u2014 which currently happens to be more than an entire year\u2019s worth of wages for the average Millennial<\/a>. Ouch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The good news? You don\u2019t need 20% of the cost of a house in savings before you can become a homeowner. Last year, the average homebuyer only put down 10% of the cost of their home<\/a>. And for first-time homebuyers, the average down payment was only 5%<\/strong>. Remember, that\u2019s the average. Tt\u2019s possible to get a mortgage and finance a home purchase with even less saved for a down payment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Downside of a Lower Down Payment<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Now, before you run to the nearest open house and shout \u201cI\u2019ll take it!\u201d at the real estate professional with the sign-in sheet… It\u2019s worth noting that low down payment mortgages typically require mortgage insurance. That’s an additional expense those putting down 20% aren\u2019t required to pay. It should also go without saying that the more you put down, the lower your monthly mortgage payment. And the more you put down, the less you\u2019ll pay in interest to the lender financing your home purchase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So if your salary is higher than the average Millennial\u2019s, or if you live in a housing market with more affordable-than-average homes for sale, a 20% down payment may be a good target for you. Just remember that that 20% number is not a set-in-stone requirement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can browse real estate listings online to get a rough idea of what homes cost in your area. From there, you can decide on a savings goal: the amount of money you\u2019ll plan to save for your down payment before you start shopping for a home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Remember, housing prices fluctuate. A down payment won\u2019t be the only thing you need savings for when you own a home. That means your savings goal may be a bit of a moving target. When in doubt, it doesn\u2019t hurt to plan to save more than you think you\u2019ll actually need.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Make a Budget, If You Don\u2019t Already Have One<\/h2>\n\n\n
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As a future homeowner, having a budget and saving money for things like home maintenance will be important. Plus, it\u2019s nearly impossible to find additional ways to save your money if you don\u2019t really know how you\u2019re currently spending it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re not a spreadsheets and numbers person, the idea of making a budget can feel a little intimidating. But baking a budget doesn\u2019t need to be complicated. Take a good look at your income, and subtract your on-going bills and expenses. Then, try to divide the rest of your spending into categories that make sense for you. You can start with broad categories like \u2018Food\u2019 or \u2018Travel\u2019. It might also make more sense to break your spending down into more specific categories. After all, \u2019Groceries\u2019 are a different sort of \u2018Food\u2019 expense than \u2018Eating Out\u2019. And if you\u2019re not sure how much of your money you\u2019re spending in different areas? Well, you may need to save receipts or check your bank statements for awhile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hopefully, you\u2019re already in the habit of saving some money each month. If not, don’t fret: there’s no time like the present. (Want some ideas for where, exactly, to park your savings while you build up your down payment? We’ve got you covered.<\/a>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Cut Your Expenses<\/h2>\n\n\n
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There are plenty of so-called financial gurus who love to point out all the ways in which cutting out little expenses can add up to big savings over time. Cut out your workday coffee habit, and you can save $1,000 a year! <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

And it is true that little costs add up, over time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But if your strategy for saving serious money is to just cut out all the little things and wait for the savings to accumulate, you\u2019ll probably be waiting a long, long time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you eliminate a $4-per-workday latte and add that $20 to the bank every week, it\u2019ll take you almost a decade to clear the five-figure savings mark. Now, if your goal is to to save $50,000 for a 20% down payment on an average home for sale in 2018, and you\u2019re trying to reach that goal by setting aside $20 a week, it\u2019ll take you more than 48 years<\/em> to get the money together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re serious about buying a home, cutting out small but unnecessary expenditures won\u2019t help nearly as much as eliminating bigger expenses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5. Think Big<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Start by thinking about how you might reduce your biggest expenses first. Can you rent a smaller or less expensive apartment while you\u2019re saving for your future home? Or live with a roommate? Or (gulp) move back home with your folks for a year? Maybe you can plan a low-key staycation instead of adding stamps to your passport. Or keep your old-and-reliable car in good working order and forgo buying a new one for another few years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once you\u2019ve considered ways to reduce your biggest expenses, you can start moving down to lower or mid-range expenses. Maybe you can give up that gym membership you\u2019re not really utilizing. Or swap your cable bill for a streaming service. Maybe you can keep your old phone one more year instead of upgrading to the latest and greatest device. Have you checked your car insurance rate lately? Perhaps you can save money by switching to a competitor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Get creative. Just remember that you\u2019ve still got to live your life between now and when you ultimately have enough saved for a down payment. Eating packaged ramen for dinner every night for the next three years might help you save money. But it will also probably leave you miserable (and nutrient-deprived, to boot.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. Increase Your Earnings<\/h2>\n\n\n
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You\u2019ve probably guessed as much, but we\u2019ll spell it out here. The real trick to saving enough money for a down payment on a home isn\u2019t just in cutting your expenses down to the bare minimum. That can help, of course. But if you want to save big, finding ways to earn more (and saving those extra earnings) will get you to your savings goal much faster than just spending less.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Increasing your income isn\u2019t necessarily about finding a higher-paying job or a more lucrative career\u2014though if that\u2019s an option you haven\u2019t considered, by all means, consider it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe it\u2019s time to ask your boss for a small raise.  If it works, you can funnel the extra part of your future paychecks directly into your savings. You won\u2019t miss money you haven\u2019t gotten used to spending, and you\u2019ll reach your goal that much more quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Did you get a big tax refund? An end of year bonus? A birthday check from your dear Aunt Ida? Dropping any extra funds directly into your down payment savings account should help you avoid temptation. You can build your nest egg for your future home faster that way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

7. Consider a Side Hustle<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Taking on a second job, a side gig, or project-based freelance work, and saving those funds for your down payment can help you increase your savings in a hurry. You might not want to work crazy hours or live super frugally forever. But if you play your card right, you won\u2019t have to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earning enough to pay rent and<\/em> save for a down payment isn\u2019t easy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But if your future mortgage payment isn\u2019t much more than your current rent, you can think of the hard work of finding the additional funds you need to squirrel away for that down payment as a temporary project. With a little bit of dedication, you’ll be putting a down payment on your first home before you know it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Renting isn\u2019t exactly flushing your money down the drain, of course. Paying rent gives you…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1826,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[43,79,38,40],"series":[],"class_list":["post-1812","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-money-matters","tag-down-payment","tag-first-time-homebuyers","tag-saving","tag-savings"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n7 Ways to Save For Your Down Payment | Morty Resources<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"You don't need to put down 20% to buy a new house. 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