The National Association of REALTORS has reported that the median first-time homebuyer age is around 38 years old as of 2024. With a statistic like that, it can be hard to imagine someone becoming a homeowner at 20 years old (nearly half
of the median age), especially in California, where real estate is notoriously expensive.
Yet, that is what one Self-Help borrower, Andrea, was able to accomplish.
Andrea lives in Bakersfield, CA, and works for Trader Joe’s. She was looking into houses available in her area, and she decided to submit an inquiry showing her interest in a home even though she wasn’t quite sure if she would qualify.
The realtor she spoke with was able to connect her to Lourdes Vazquez, one of Self-Help's mortgage loan officers, because they believed Andrea would be a good candidate for our Equity Boost loan product. After working with Lourdes, Andrea was
approved for an Equity Boost loan, which meant that she would only be required to put 1% down for her new home!
Lourdes also connected Andrea with a down payment assistance program. After applying, Andrea was awarded a $17,500 grant for her down payment, meaning she would already have equity in her home.
After a thorough search for houses in her area, Andrea finally found one that felt just right for her and officially became a homeowner — congratulations, Andrea!
Save Smarter
One of the biggest barriers to homeownership is building up enough savings. If you currently keep your savings in a checking or traditional savings account, you might be missing out on an opportunity to easily grow your money, which could be the
difference in helping you get to homeownership faster.
Consider moving your savings into an account that earns more interest:
A money market account is often considered a hybrid
account between checking and savings, allowing you to have easy access to your funds while earning more interest than traditional savings.
A term certificate (CD)
is another great option, where you agree to a set term length and interest rate — these accounts usually have high interest rates for your money to grow, but you cannot touch that money until the term length is over unless you're
willing to forfeit some of the interest earnings.
Most financial institutions like Self-Help will offer some version of these types of high-interest accounts, which allow you to make the most of your money.
Equity Boost
Self-Help's Equity Boost loans are available to first-generation homebuyers and homebuyers with modest incomes so that borrowers like Andrea can achieve their dreams of homeownership. These loans offer 0% down payment, the ability to finance closing
costs into the loan, $2,000 toward a rainy-day fund, and lower mortgage rates.
Ownership for All
At Self-Help, we believe in ownership and economic opportunity for all, especially for underserved communities, which is why we are so grateful to be able to support first-time homeowners like Andrea in achieving their dreams.