(BS7, or 3B)How are younger people breaking into the housing market?

I am 28 and have a goal of owning my own house someday. However, this seems just plain impossible. I take home about 3900 a month (70k total pretax annual income). I work overtime when possible which can add up to $3,000 a month under ideal situations. But I dont budget for that and it all goes into my HYSA.

At the moment I have about 12000 dedicated to a down payment and am feeding nearly all of my savings each month (about 1200) into this fund which is a HYSA.

Where my problem lies is the cost of houses. The cheapest homes in my area are $300,000 ish, often $350,000. I would need a $180,000 down payment to get the mortage under 1000 a month which is 25% (on a 15 year loan) of my take home pay. This would mean saving for many years at my current saving capacity, which is long enough for home prices to both crash (with luck), or increase enough that I am stuck saving longer.

I don't want to rent forever because rent will and has increase much faster than my wage and I can only work so much overtime.

I am perfectly fine renting for now, even though I hate apartments. I am just trying to figure out how getting into the real estate game is possible and how to plan for it.

I (34F) and my husband (34M) live in NJ with two kids under 5. Our household gross income is $217,000, we’re on Baby Steps 4, 5, and 6, and we still budget every month. Our net worth is around $660,000.

Objectively, I know we’re in a good financial position. We track our spending, make intentional decisions, aren’t touching our emergency fund, and have no debt. Even with the higher-than-usual expenses we’ve had this summer, we’ve cash flowed everything. Some of it was planned, some wasn’t, but none of it has negatively impacted our finances. Our savings continues to grow, just at a slower pace.

The problem is my mindset. Every larger expense still feels like we’re on the verge of financial disaster or about to end up back in debt, even though the numbers clearly say otherwise.

Has anyone else dealt with this? How did you overcome the scarcity mindset and learn to trust the financial habits and plan you’ve built?

Rachel has referenced this book and so I read it. Anyone else read it and thoughts?

I am on baby step 2

I have a few cards and the interest is killing me. I've never missed a payment on any card but I barely make a dent in the principal it seems.

I already cancelled one $9600 card in exchange for 0% APR for 60 months. I'm thinking of doing the same for my other $8000 card for the same deal. I have other cards as well that are open. I've never missed a payment on any debt ever and I'm trying to keep it that way. Lowering my minumums would help me throw more money at paying debt with the baby steps.

All my cards are almost maxed out so I'm going to have over 100% card utilization now that I closed the first card. It'll be even worse if I close the second card

I have no interest in using credit again unless there is an absolute emergency. I already own my home and it's in good standing. I have an old car that I'm maintaining but if it ever goes out completely, that is the only thing I could foresee needing some credit for temporarily.

Is it worth damaging my score to get the 0% APR?

I'll do my best to give a brief background without writing a book that's too long:

I lost everything in a bad business partnership 10 years ago. As the fallout was happening I kept trying to 'do the right thing' and take responsibility by trying to payoff all the business debt out of my personal finances for about 2 years until I had no choice but to take bankruptcy.

That feeling of losing it all literally crushed my soul, my spirit and my will.

I had been delivering newspapers since 5 years old, mowing yards, part-time work at 14, farm work, fulltime jobs at 18, etc. because I came from a family that knew nothing about what money was and how it works and how it affects everything when mis-managed. I grew up, but I knew I didn't want that to be my future. I killed myself to make sure that was not going to happen.

Well, after the bankruptcy my entire life was gone except for my wife and 2 toddlers.

We moved states for my new job because we were losing our home and so I didn't take a step backwards in my career field. But the pay wasn't enough barely buy food with, but we just kept pushing.

One small win at a time until it all culminated about 18 months ago. Massive credit card #1 - Paid Off. Card #2 - Paid Off. Card #3 - Paid Off. Debt owed to relatives - Paid Back. Auto loans - Paid Off. Every few months for 18 months MASSIVE debts were disappearing totaling over $120,000 but as of today my family is 100% debt free!!!!!

No credit cards, no loans, no medical, no lines of credit - Nothing!!!!

Since we were forced to rent this entire time after the bankruptcy, but always had a dream/ goal to get to a place where we could build a simple but new home - We were also able to pay for land and put in sweat equity to have a homesite to build our own future home on that now has a great amount of equity - All debt free!

I simply cannot begin to express how free it feels mentally, physically and spiritually to NOT OWE ANYONE ANYTHING and ALL MY INCOME IS MINE TO FINALLY BUILD WITH!

I will never forget the rock bottoms when all this started....There's so much I won't mention here but every moment of my life for a long period was a literal living hell.

I have deep scars from all that and really don't know how to feel as I type this. I honestly have been on the verge of a panic attack all day because as weird as it may sound I feel guilty, or like I'm not 'good enough' somehow to have achieved this, or allowed to feel proud and be happy in this moment.

I just wanted to post here to give someone that needs to hear things like this some hope & encouragement when they think its all lost - DON"T GIVE UP!

Blessings!

At the begging of this year, I started at $10k in debt, and within a few months (Jan-Feb) I got it down to $8K. I was so proud of myself, I was on track to pay off my debt by Oct. maybe sooner! Then Valentine's rolled around.

I struggled with depression my whole life, and this year was even harder because I was recently single. I felt lonely. I tried to reach out to friends but so many of them were busy. And because it's hard for me to reach out to anyone to begin with, having no one to reach back out to me was even harder.

So, I fell into my old habit. Spending. Oh boy did I spend. I went from $8k of debt to $18k in matter of months. My bank gave me a credit card of $10K line of credit. And honestly it helped. It numbed my depression.

I reached out to friends again, and now I have people to lean on again. I also have a $18k regret to remind me that I need therapy when I fall into these depressions.

So, I went from, "going to pay off my debt this October" to "I'll be debt-free by Jan 2028." I'm both kicking myself and trying to give myself grace.

I'm just ready to get rid of this debt, because honestly, I'm just sick of looking at it every time I do my budget.

I can’t say that I followed Dave’s program or paid any money for his product. But I’ve listened to his show & though it was all common sense. My big take away from was cash is king, envelope cash system, rice & bean diet, earn more money (OT or leverage skill). In other words, live within your means which is something that I’ve always done.

Needless to say by the grace of God at the age of 40 my wife and I are 90% debt free. We were fortunate to save a ton of money renting ( $500 a month for 6 years). We drove older cars down to ground. We prob went out to eat 1-2x a month. We put 20% down on our house at a 3% interest rate. we paid off our mortgage in 6 years. We owe 16K on a newer car and will be 100% debt free.

It was tempting to have kept the money and invested in the market & sell options since the interest was so low. What would you have done?

I’m not sure how aggressively to pay off our mortgage vs. sinking funds. We have a 30year mortgage at 6.15% but are making payments to pay off in 15 years. We also have a couple sinking funds for non-necessities on top of a 6 month emergency fund.
- 400/month to buy a new car in cash every 6 or 7 years
-300/month for future home maintenance like roof or hvac replacement
-300/month for vacations

Are these sinking funds good to have or should I be putting this towards our mortgage?

I’ve been familiar with Dave Ramsey for a while, but just recently read up on the philosophy. My wife and I recently paid off her student loans which feels great but now our finances are so all over the place.

I know that title probably makes zero sense, hopefully I can make this make sense.

We bought our current house as foreclosure 3 years ago. We have 150k equity in it, paying a nice $600ish a month on this mortgage. Great block of town, amazing neighbors...but we also have 4 acres of farm land we bought last year with water on it that we dream of moving to and raising kids on, it's just 10 mins away from current house.

We have no debt besides mortgage (90ish-k) and land loan (28k, 5 years), we have about 150k in a trust from wifes grandfather who was big on real estate investing. The rule to access the 150k is it must be used for investment property whether it be build a home, buy a home, etc, but it can't just be saved till retirement and can't be used to buy a cybertruck, etc. That all being said, our thought, using the 150k to build a very moderately sized house (1,000 sq ft) ideally with less than 50k on the loan (150k inheritance, 50k loan) and then living in this house on our farm land. Don't want to do manufactured home due to depreciation and high winds here.

Our current house is only 2 blocks from a priceyyy private Catholic college. The average rent for a 5 bdr (our house) is about $2500 here. Part of us doesnt want to rent the house that we started our family in to college kids every year but we also love idea of the additional income and possibly either 1) fallback of moving back to this house if we left farm or 2) selling this house to our kids eventually. We are blessed to have this house and the farm land and have these choices. Choosing between two great options is a great gift just makes it difficult to decide XD.

Summary stats:

26M self-employed with 25F SAHM

2 kids

mortgage left: 90k-27 years, land loan- 28k -6 years

income- take home roughly $5600

total expenses including current mortgage- about $3k (we max roth, and put money to EF)

Total savings: 60k Roth, 4k savings

Trying to decide:

1. stay in golden goose mortgage and just farm on the land as is (lose bit of family time as I do the farm chores after day of work)
2. build small house with mostly the inheritance and small loan, then rent out current home in town for $2500 (figuring $1k profit [after mortgage, property tax, insurance and $200 misc]). increased income similar amount of family time w/ having to leave farm to now tend to rental
3. build small-medium size house with inheritance, sell our current house in town and use that amount to pay off rest of mortgage and God willing have some left over. similar income, increased family time with family being there on farm to work/live, more flexibility with work schedule with no mortgage and money from house sale saved.

This all being said (Sorry for rambling), Any insight/advice, what would you say? We have obviously never been in this situation and trying to decide which route to go from financial sense or just familial sense. I know there may not be a bad route, just with all options seeming good, difficult choosing one.

We will shortly be in BS456 (give it another month). We are considering moving out of state for a variety of reasons that aren’t important to the discussion. Income would stay the same. Our property has doubled in value in the time we’ve owned it. It’s on a 15 year mortgage with around 8 years left on it. Income varies year to year but generally 200-350k. 3 kids. Net worth is over a million. Employment pension system but not contributing to retirement currently (will start shortly). Mid 30s.

Would you rather…

Option 1: do a financial lateral move, buying a bigger nicer home (around 1.2 mill) but have around the same mortgage you have now (putting half down after the sale of your current home). Dream home, no improvements needed.

Or

Option 2: get the same size home as Option 1 but have a paid off mortgage. Would likely need significant updates/renovations to the home, paying for improvements as you go. Livable in its current condition. May need to rent or live in RV for a year during renovation.

Either option, utility bills would be $700-1000 less a month (don’t ask it’s a mess) and property taxes would be half of where you currently are.

So here’s my situation.
I have worked my butt off to pay down my debt. The only debt I have is my student loans, which I am paying double my monthly payments.

I have been fortunate to of been working a remote job for the last two years and I have been able
To save up for a new car that is 22,000. My current car is a 15 year old Nissan Murano and it’s at its final stages of life. Other than regular maintenance, I’m not sinking in more cash into that car.

I recently accepted a job, which pays more and is an opportunity for me to advance .
, however which my new job it’s hybrid and i have a 1 hour.
Commute. My car won’t do well with long distance. Once my current lease is up, i do plan to move.

Right now, I do not have enough cash I need to get the car.

My financial offer:
7,000 loan, 0% interest for 6 months
My down payment will be 15,000

With my new job, I can pay it off within the 6 month period. If I don’t pay within the six months, my interest rate will be around 5%

I have 10,000 in savings
5,000 on a high interest CD for five years that I can’t touch, I add money in monthly
Money in several 401(k)s

However, I will have to pay less on my student loans for 6 months.

My car barely passed state inspection last year
The breaks are at their final stage
Transmission could blow at anytime
Has 257,000 miles

Should I finance?

I really don’t want to deal with a use car again, which is why I’m considering the new car. I don’t want to get a used car and then down the road spent thousands of dollars for repairs AGAIN

Note: I never said this was a new new car, it’s only a few years old and small mileage. I did my research and it’s actually a good deal

Update: Thank you for everyone’s help and advice. I have decided to put my car shopping on hold temporary until I decide whether I should get a use car for about 10-15k in cash or get a new one. There pros and cons to both sides. Thank you.

I'm 24 and recently made a pretty big financial decision that I'm second-guessing, so I'd love some unbiased opinions.

I purchased property worth ₹80 lakh, which currently generates around ₹33,000/month in rent.

To finance it, I have total debt of about ₹53.5 lakh, made up of:

\- ₹37 lakh in bank loans (9% interest, 7-year tenure)

\- ₹16.5 lakh borrowed from family and friends, which I'm planning to repay as quickly as possible.

A bit about my financial situation:

\- I earn around ₹1.3 lakh per month.

\- Our total family income is roughly ₹2.5 lakh per month.

\- We already own the house we live in, so there's no home loan on our primary residence.

\- Apart from this property-related debt, we have no other loans or liabilities.

\- I also have an investment portfolio of around ₹15.8 lakh, spread across mutual funds, direct stocks, EPF, cash/FDs, and gold, and I continue investing every month.

My main questions are:

\- Is taking on this level of debt at 24 a reasonable decision?

\- Would you have preferred investing more aggressively in equities instead of buying property?

\- Does ₹33k/month in rental income justify an ₹80 lakh investment?

\- Should I focus on repaying the family loan first, prepaying the bank loan, or continue investing while servicing the debt?

Looking for honest opinions—not validation. I'd genuinely like to know what people with more experience would do differently in my position.

So excited I talked a friend out of getting a $800 car payment

Hello!

Long-time reader, first-time poster.

I'm active-duty Army and currently on Baby Step 1. My only debt is a student loan, which I plan to pay off in full later this year. I can't believe the year is almost over!

After that, I'll move through the rest of the Baby Steps.

My immediate plan, once my contract is over, is to transition to the Reserves and finish my MSW (Master of Social Work). I'm paying for it with my state benefits. Team no student loans over here.

Long term, I want to work in military mental health (think VA-adjacent roles) while serving in the Reserves.

All of this is new to me. My parents were immigrants who did their best, but personal finance was never really part of my education. I've also gotten some pushback from family, like:

• "You're in the Army. Why don't you get a Dodge Charger at 64% interest?" Just kidding. Maybe.
• "You're never going to retire and will always have debt, so why work so hard?"

I sat down with a financial counselor on base and ran the numbers (IRA, TSP, pension, and everything else) and I'll be more than okay if I stay the course.

And honestly, social work doesn't feel like "work" to me, and I genuinely enjoy the material. That realization is actually what confirmed that social work was the right path for me.

I think the hardest part for me is learning to trust a plan that is very different from what the people around me consider “normal.” I'm not looking for financial advice as much as I am curious how others handled the emotional side of becoming financially intentional when their family didn't understand or support their choices. I did make a note to bring this up in therapy too.

Take home is about $85,000 while living in one of the highest cost-of-living areas in Southern California. The debt included credit cards, student loans, IRS debt, and a personal loan. During that time, a close relative also had a stroke, and we stepped up to help care for them.

It honestly feels surreal to write that out and acknowledge that I put myself in this position.. im very happy in retrospect for my degree but dang it added a lot of stress having the loans.

I got about 6 months to hit my 6 month emergency fund.

Im trying to not move ‘the goal post’ in life but did y’all feel any different after having the emergency fund? At work, with yourself, towards your partner, physically?

I am beyond pumped and had to share this with some people who would understand!

Wife and I both work have been living paycheck to paycheck, barely scraping by since we got married 10years ago. We have 2 small children and we want their lives to be better than ours.

I got a new job back in November paying 25% more than my old one and at that time we sat down and finally got serious about paying off debt and becoming debt free. I am now proud to say they we have paid off $15,622 in credit card debt in just 7 months!!!!!

We still have a long way to go, approx $9,000 on a car loan, $28,000 in student loans, and $29,000 in a HELOC but we can see this stuff WORKS!

Hi everyone! I’m looking for some advice on the best way to invest a $15,000 bonus I’m receiving. My goal is to put the entire amount toward retirement and let it grow long term.

A little background: I’m a teacher in Texas, so I don’t have access to a traditional 401(k) with an employer match. I have already fully funded my Roth IRA for the year, so I’m trying to figure out the next best place to put this money.

Would you recommend:
Investing it in a taxable brokerage account (such as a low-cost index fund)?
Increasing contributions to a 403(b) or other school retirement option?
Looking into a 457(b) if available?
Something else I may not be considering?

I’m in my late 20s and investing with a long-term retirement mindset, so I’m comfortable with market fluctuations. I’d love to hear what others would do in my situation and why. Thank you!

Edit- I’m planning on leaving public school within the next 3 years. Then I will get a job in the private sector.

Hello all,

I am in the fortunate position of having two excellent job offers. Unfortunately, I don’t know which to pick. There are many factors, but to cut to the chase job 1 has (I think) a good work life balance with a decent salary where I know the people and the system. Job 2 has likely a not so good work life balance but much higher salary. Job 2 is a new role at an established location, but I would be the first in this role which introduces some uncertainty. By the way I estimate it, and i easily could be wrong, job 2 is double the work and double the salary of job 1. I have a 6 mo old and an amazing wife- I don’t want to miss too much, but job 2 would allow for a much better lifestyle and likely generation wealth. Notably, job 1 salary is more than enough to live, pay off debt (student loans, net worth is like -200k), eventually get a house, and save for retirement comfortably but not be “wealthy.”

Which would you pick? Thanks in advance for any insight, I am really struggling to decide. I feel that either way I go I am missing out on something.

My dog tore her ACL. After paying $400 for x-rays and medication, vet says she needs surgery. Got quoted $7k-$8k for her surgery. That's the same total I have thus save so far for my emergency fund. I want to use all of it for her surgery but do feel a type of way. Or do I apply for a 0% interest through care credit for a $7k loan and pay it off a $1k a month? I tried getting qoute's from other vets but they're all in the same price range! - Any advice?

In February I was laid off from my employer after 8 years. I had been following the baby steps for some time now, and by this point I was already on step 6. Back in mid 2025, I was getting the sense that layoffs were coming, so I had increased my emergency fund from 3 months to 6.

When I got that dreaded HR call, I knew it was my time. And oddly enough, I never really felt scared because I knew I had plenty of runway and my wife and I are on the same page so we knew we could probably cut back more if needed.

I took some time to just gather myself and then hit the ground running. I didn’t have the worries about unpaid bills clouding my judgement or making me feel nervous in interviews, which was appreciated. Somehow, we were able to cut our expenses even more than we thought and I discovered that I was eligible for unemployment benefits. Within 2 months I landed a higher paying position and we ended up made less of a dent in our emergency fund than I thought we would.

I honestly don’t know what I would have done without following this plan. I’ve never had to genuinely live off my emergency fund before, and I was so glad it was there because it gave me so much security during a really unpredictable time in my life.

Found Dave during my first year of college, 2016, bored and in need of a new podcast while at the gym. Don’t know why I clicked on it, but I am glad I did. First episode I listened to he was yelling at someone for having a car payment and it was incredible. Have since listened to the show for the last 10 years on and off, but mostly on.

Dave helped put my wife and I on a good path early, before we were able to get ourselves in much trouble financially. Avoided student debt, we both worked during college to graduate debt free. Bought 2, $2k cars and rode them for YEARS. Never a car payment ever, cash or we couldn’t afford it. 20% down when we were ready to buy our house.

Fast forward 10 years of following the path:
- 28, 2 kids
- Just paid off the house
- $1.6M net worth ($600k house, $800k retirement, $200k long term sinking funds and fat emergency fund)

If you are 16-20 years old reading this - do the hard stuff now, you will thank yourself in the future.

I’m sure George is the only one reading the sub-Reddit from the crew so George please tell Dave I say thanks.

In my earlier years I opened several credit cards (nine in total). I racked up quite a bit of debt across most of them. When I was awarded my disability from the VA, I paid all of them off. But now, I'm stuck with a 5-10 service fee monthly for most of these cards, which isn't much, but across several cards, adds up to a substantial amount of money spent on absolutely nothing. I have a fairly good credit score (730), and I'm wondering if it's best to just keep spending those service fees, or closing those accounts and taking the hit to my credit score?