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Earning six figures is often seen as the key to financial security, but for one New York man, it still hasn’t been enough to buy a home.
Writing to “The Ramsey Show,” Owen said he makes $124,000 a year across two jobs, bought a used car and attended a low-cost in-state college, yet homeownership still feels out of reach.
“My problem is that I can’t afford a home,” he wrote. “How can I possibly afford a home and how do I stop being this angry about being stolen from by the boomer generation and their generation’s government, which is ruining my relationship with my parents?”
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‘I’ve Done Everything Right’
Co-host Rachel Cruze said she understands why Owen is frustrated, even if she doesn’t agree with blaming his parents or an entire generation.
“I get kind of being pissed about the housing situation,” she said. “It’s wild how expensive things are.”
Co-host George Kamel agreed, saying many younger buyers feel like they’ve checked all the right boxes but are still struggling.
“I understand going, ‘I’ve done everything right,’” he said. “Even debt-free, making six figures, it’s still hard to afford a home where you want to live, no matter what your age is. And so I get where he’s coming from.”
Kamel also interjected a joke, asking, “Why were you a child in 1992 instead of buying up a home? What were you doing, man?”
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Instead of focusing on what previous generations had, the hosts encouraged Owen to focus on what he can control. They said someone making $124,000 with no mention of debt or children should have room to save aggressively for a down payment, even if that means making bigger sacrifices or buying farther from where he would ideally like to live.
“It is the reality, and I think that’s what’s hard is like it sucks,” Cruze said. “But then what’s the next thing we’re going to do? Are we going to sit and complain and be mad or are we going to say, ‘Okay, let’s get creative and figure out how can I put money aside to save up for a down payment?’”
She added that Ramsey Solutions generally recommends first-time buyers aim for at least a 5% down payment, even if it takes longer than it did for previous generations.
The Market Has Changed
Kamel said Owen’s frustration isn’t just emotional. He pointed to the growing gap between home prices and incomes as evidence that buying a home has become much harder.
“The median home price is now roughly six times the median household income,” Kamel said. “When you look back at the 1970s, it was like two times.”
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He said limited housing supply, homeowners holding onto historically low mortgage rates and other structural factors have made it more difficult for first-time buyers to compete.
Still, Kamel argued that anger alone won’t help Owen become a homeowner.
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“I get where he’s coming from,” Kamel said. “But the real question, ‘How can I possibly afford a home?’ is set a goal. You should have a pretty good amount of margin in that 124 grand.”
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This article He Makes $124K Across 2 Jobs and Still Can’t Buy a Home. He Blames His Parents and the Boomer Generation. ‘How Do I Stop Being This Angry?’ originally appeared on Benzinga.com
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