The pandemic threw a wrench in countless plans; travel plans, career plans, and education plans to name a few. The list goes on. But what about your plans to buy your first property? Without a doubt, the COVID19 pandemic has added another twist to the long and difficult path of buying your first home. But here’s the thing, it’s important not to lose sight of your goals. If owning a home in the next three years is something you’re working towards, here are three things you can do to help set yourself up for success.

‍

Consider your goals and time horizon

Are you hoping to buy a property and make a quick profit? You may want to reconsider. Generally speaking, the longer you plan on keeping or living in your home, the better off your real estate investment will be. So, if you’re planning on buying a home only to hold for a year or less, you may want to rethink your time horizon. Ultimately, no one can predict the short or long-term impact of the pandemic on the real estate market. But we have some thoughts on buying a home during a recession.

‍

Consider your job stability

Your job and income have a huge impact on your ability to qualify for a mortgage and buy a home. It’s important to consider how employment rates and your own particular work situation will be impacted by the pandemic. Once you’ve thought this through, it’s time to make a plan on how you can mitigate the risk and continue with a stable job or supplement your working situation to keep saving towards your down payment goals.

‍

Keep an eye on interest rates

If you have a significant amount saved for a down payment, you may actually want to move your time horizon up. The key here is to understand how interest rates impact your mortgage payments. Today, interest rates are unusually low, which means that if you have the capital, debt is actually cheaper. Ultimately, the lower the interest rate, the less you will be paying back in interest over the time of your mortgage. The difference of a few percentage points in interest rates could save you thousands of dollars over the course of your loan.

‍

The bottom line for aspiring first-time homebuyers

The bottom line is that depending on your situation, the pandemic can impact your homeownership goals both positively and negatively. If it's making you rethink the idea of taking on a mountain of debt and a mortgage, you can look into emerging homeownership models like Key, where our co-equity model allows your to start owning without needing to qualify for a mortgage.

‍