

If the millennial generation is the future of a sustained real estate recovery, those local markets that are actually most affordable while still being attractive to this generation are likely where the most unimpeded housing growth will occur.
Markets in the southeast and Midwest dominated the list of the Top 15 most affordable housing markets for millennials to buy, according to a RealtyTrac analysis (see full methodology below). Two counties in Georgia made the list, led by Richmond County in the Augusta-Richmond County metro area at No. 1. Despite a below-national-average estimated median income of $37,561 in Richmond County, a relatively low median home price of just $64,100 translated into less than 11 percent of median income spent on a house payment for a median priced home. Other states with two counties making the list of most affordable for buying were Maryland, North Carolina, Nebraska and Tennessee.
When you finished college or began working, I'm sure you dreamed of one day owning your own place. Dreamed of having a place to call your own, with no landlord, room mates, RA's, or parents telling you to keep the place clean. Now that you have finished school and landed your dream job, your ready to say "sayonara" to that one bedroom apartment and start "moving on up to east side" so to speak.
First, there a couple things you will need to get in order. Before you start scouting for that mansion of a home, you will want to talk with your bank, credit union, or local mortgage lender to get a pre-qualification letter and price range. Some buyers may have a range in mind, but it really depends on the financing the bank will give you. There is no sense in looking at $1,000,000 homes if the lender will only give you a mortgage for $500,000.
After you have your pre-qualification letter, you can begin searching for homes (in your price range, of course)! This is by far the most exciting part of buying a home. The chance to scour your local real estate market, find the best deals, and ultimately fall in love with your new home. Hopefully by this point you are working a real estate broker. To be honest, you should find a real estate broker as soon as you have a pre-qualification letter, and send the letter to them straight away. This will give them proof that you can afford the homes you say you can, and also give the broker more information so they can find you homes to look at.
My biggest suggestion is to ask your broker if they have a MLS syndicated website that they can give you an account on. This will give you the opportunity to search the MLS, just like a real estate agent, in your spare time, and find homes to ask your broker about. I strongly advise to stay away from Zillow and Trulia for the first couple weeks of searching. These sites tend to have out of date or inaccurate data, and a Realtor's MLS syndicated website will be much more useful.
Some first time home buyers believe that this home is going to be their dream home, with fixtures fit for royalty and walk in closets you could get lost in. Just remember that 99% of the time, you are going to have to concede on one thing or another. It is highly difficult to find the "perfect" home that is in your head, so make sure you go into the home buying process knowing there will be some things you will have to do without.
Alex Vercheski
Keller Williams Realty of Greensboro
Thirty-two states and the District of Columbia are at risk of long-term home affordability problems and housing shortages if lackluster levels of...