Her real estate agent, Anita Vida-D’Antonio with Coldwell Banker Realty in Alexandria, suggested looking farther south for affordability.
“I looked at Lake Ridge in Prince William County, but everything was selling for $30,000 or $40,000 over the asking price,” Cross said. “I only go into the office twice a week, so giving up my 10-minute commute when I lived in Alexandria doesn’t matter as much.”
After four months of searching, Cross purchased a three-level, three-bedroom townhouse with three bathrooms in Woodbridge.
“My lender approved me for $450,000, but I spent $388,000 on the house,” Cross said. “Now my daughter can walk to school, too.”
Like many first-time home buyers, Cross faced the triple threat of high prices, high mortgage rates and a lack of homes for sale. Buyers today find multiple ways to overcome that trifecta of obstacles, including some tried-and-true methods.
“First-time buyers need to be ready for a longer process, to look at a lot of properties and to possibly lose out on offers,” Vida-D’Antonio said. “This market isn’t for the faint of heart.”
Adjusting priorities: size, condition and location
While Cross became a homeowner by dropping her preference for Alexandria and swapping to a townhouse with lower fees instead of a condo, nearly every buyer must compromise on something. The top priority for 56 percent of today’s buyers when choosing a home is price, according to the 2024 Consumer Survey by Coldwell Banker Real Estate, followed by location (50 percent). Condition — either move-in ready or a fixer-upper — is a distant third priority (27 percent), followed by size (23 percent).
“To offset the issues of affordability and the lack of selection, buyers either need to shrink the things they want, up their budget or change the location where they’re looking for a home,” said Ron Sitrin, an agent with Long & Foster Real Estate in D.C.
Patty Smith, an agent with Coldwell Banker Realty in Alexandria, suggests that first-time buyers start their search by thinking about their lifestyle for the next two to five years. Recognizing that they aren’t buying their “forever home” can take some of the pressure off, she said.
“After you think about how you like to spend your time, you can decide if you would prefer a smaller space so you can get into the neighborhood you want,” Smith said. “If a larger space at a lower price is more of a priority, you can think about whether you want to look farther away.”
For one couple Sitrin worked with recently, switching Maryland counties from Montgomery to Howard provided an acceptable commute, access to good schools, more choices of homes and a higher likelihood of an accepted offer.
“They ended up getting a bigger house and more land for their money, plus a great school district,” Sitrin said. “Moving from one market that has fewer homes, such as part of Montgomery County, to a different neighborhood, such as in D.C., can make it easier for first-time buyers to find something to buy.”
Besides widening a home search to more locations, buyers may want to consider a townhouse instead of a single-family home for affordability and to skip condos because of their fees, Vida-D’Antonio said.
“A fixer-upper can be an option for first-time buyers if they pay less than market value and have the funds to pay for renovation costs,” Smith said. “Buyers I worked with recently found a home in Southwest D.C. and negotiated $100,000 off the price because the kitchen and bathrooms need renovation.”
Smith warned that buyers need to be sure they have the funds for renovations and a clear understanding of what’s involved. She recommends consulting a licensed contractor to get a realistic estimate before making an offer, as well as an estimate from a real estate agent about the return on investment in different neighborhoods.
Other trade-offs some buyers make, Sitrin said, are in the size of the lot or the location, such as on a busy road.
“Most people don’t expect to be able to buy the perfect home,” Sitrin said.
Financial solutions to solve buyer challenges
While first-time buyers often talk to a real estate agent first, Brandon Snow, executive director of mortgage strategy for Ally Bank in Charlotte, recommended they start with a lender to understand their budget and the relationship between…
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