How to find, and afford, your first home

Every day, the news seems to feature a story about how expensive it’s becoming to purchase a home. This is particularly worrisome for young families. If you don’t own a home and can’t tap into existing equity, finding real estate that you can afford may seem like an unrealistic dream. However, with a good financial strategy and some real estate research, you may be able to get into your first home sooner than you think.

First, get your financial house in order by getting expert help from your credit union, bank or financial planner. A financial expert can help you build a plan to save for a down-payment, lessen your debt-load and better manage your monthto-month expenses. A good one can help you develop a budget so you can put some money into savings each month. They can also advise you on how to make your savings grow and should know about any government programs – including the ability to use some savings from RRSPS – that may be available to help first-time buyers.

Next, look outside the box for more affordable homeownership options. An often-overlooked option that can help you enter the market sooner,, is land lease. In this homeownership model, buyers purchase and own their home – and own it outright – while leasing the land on which it sits. A home in a land-lease community can cost up to 30 per cent less than a comparable home in the same market, making it a much more affordable option for a first-time homebuyer and freeing up money for life’s other priorities. These homes also appreciate in value similar to comparable freeholds, which means they provide a strong return on investment if you decide to sell.

Whatever you’d like to own, the most important thing to do for your homeownership goal is to develop a sound financial strategy. And once you find that first home, you’ll start to build equity and value that will set you on the path to your forever home.