Soon-to-be first-time buyer? Well, that’s me. And based on this blog’s readership, there’s an 80% chance that’s you too.

It’s a grind. Believe me. If you’ve looked into buying your first house, you understand the weight of your decision (hopefully); and if not, you’ll realize when you look for the first time. As many of us battle along, whether under the ominous cloud of a student loan or the pain-staking job search in a slowly recovering market, it’s important to keep our goals in mind. The pressures of the current day-to-day can detract from our ability to see our endgame.

For many of us, that next big goal is home ownership. It’s an ever-evolving need, but a strong investment in our futures at the same time. It’s a shelter for our earnings, a store of value, a forced savings, and our greatest chance to build equity in ourselves. The type of home and where it’s located can vary for us over the years, but the equity we build up in it will follow us throughout our lives.

So how do we start? Well, man, that’s a tough one. It’s hard to say, given that we’re all unique in our situations. Some of us have jobs, but tens of thousands in student loans. Some of us don’t have the loans, but can’t find that job that’ll take us to the next level. And for the select few that have managed to string it all together so far, congrats.

The hardest part is saving for the down payment, I think everyone can agree on that. Buying a home on budget is pretty easy, and you can adjust your price range accordingly. It’s coming up with that extra chunk of money that gets in the way for a lot of people. In a recent TD survey, up to 60 percent of first-time buyers weren’t satisfied with the size of their down payments. Not only does a larger down payment make for smaller mortgage payments, it reduces the amount of mortgage insurance you’re liable for, plus it makes refinancing easier when the time comes. This is an interesting catch-22. On one hand, most folks would rather own a home sooner and stop paying someone else’s mortgage. But at the same time, a smaller down payment is a handicap of sorts, and makes the budget that much tighter on a monthly basis. The trade-offs are never crystal clear.

There’s no magic number for a down payment, but there are 2 key thresholds: 5% and 20%. 5% is the absolute minimum down payment you’ll need to make on your home, and 20%, the minimum amount required to avoid mandatory mortgage insurance. Breathe at 5, shoot for 20. And though it can seem like a bit of a daunting task at times, the majority of people don’t expect the extra savings to take too long. Once you establish the routine of saving, and get to a point where you can put extra cash aside, it only gets easier.

It’s like losing weight. Sure, it’s tough to start a new routine or regimen, but once you find your groove, it’s all gravy. Low-fat, tofu gravy.

So if you’re at the point where you think your first purchase is on the horizon, let’s have a chat. A real estate agent can help you set those goals and establish a budget. And who better to have on your side than friend, in the same boat, who’ll work for you for free? I’m here to help. Let’s get started.