Real Estate Q&A: Concerning '20-Somethings'

Kelsey is a 20-year-old senior working toward a bachelor’s degree in Financial Planning at the University of Central Oklahoma. Recently, I sat down with her to gain some insight on real estate concerns and questions facing young professionals in her age group. This is what she had to say: 

Q - When did you purchase your home, and was this your first time buying? 

A - Yes it was. With my dad’s help and for a low amount of money, I purchased an investment property (something my family’s had a lot of experience with) at the beginning of June 2019. 

Q - What was the process like? 

A - I expected the process to be much harder than it really was.  When looking for a property to renovate, I was much more welcoming to cosmetic problems than the average buyer, so this made the process much easier.  

Q - What did you consider the biggest complications/challenges in the whole experience? 

A - The biggest challenge for me was identifying when problems were worth the money to fix them.  Being on a college student’s budget and only having the summer to work on the property, I knew that the cosmetic issues would be my advantage because most of the time those are quick and easy fixes that add a lot more value than they cost.  I also knew that if I got myself into a position where the house’s structure was not intact, I would have some very expensive and time-consuming repairs.   

Q - What did you learn from the experience? 

A - While renovating this property, I’ve learned to not be afraid to try some of the harder tasks.  I’ve saved so much time and money by forgoing hiring contractors and just figuring out how to do them myself.  YouTube has definitely been my best friend! 

Q - What advice do you have for future first-time home buyers? What things should they keep in mind during the process? 

A - I would say create a budget and stick to it.  You don’t want to put more money into a house than it is worth.