I remember how hard it was to save up for a down payment on a house. We had young children and I had some student loans. We were able to take advantage of a first time home buyer program that gave us an interest free loan for part of our down payment but like most people we still needed actual cash to buy.
One way we were able to save money was by buying used cars instead of new ones. The price of cars has really gone up since then. I just got sticker shock looking at the average price of a new car which is around $32,000. When financing a car payments interest rates are lower than they would be for a used car but believe me payments and insurance on a $15,000 used car will be significantly lower than insurance and payments on a $32,000 car.
A couple who can get by with one car instead of two will have an easier time saving up for a house. Ideally I like to buy two year old cars and pay cash for them. Expensive cars and real estate agents kind of go together but so far I have resisted the urge to be just like everyone else. I have a car I bought used several years ago and paid cash for. It gets excellent mileage and is very reliable.
