At the beginning of this year, my wife and I officially hit the housing market. We’ve had our current house for 10 years and with a growing family and a bigger income, we thought it was finally time to allow ourselves to upgrade our lifestyle. The home buying process isn’t something I’m very familiar with, however, so I went out looking for guidance. As luck would have it, I found a book that recently came out that was perfect for me. It’s called First-Time Home Buyer: The Complete Playbook to Avoiding Rookie Mistakes.
The book is written by Mindy Jensen and Scott Trench over at Bigger Pockets. If you’ve never heard of Bigger Pockets, it’s one of the leading real estate investing websites and podcasts out there. They also have a huge library of books they’ve published to help real estate investors. And fun fact, I was actually a guest on episode 107 of the Bigger Pockets Money podcast.
Mindy and Scott are two people I trust when it comes to real estate. So, when I found their book, I reached out to Mindy and she was kind enough to send me a copy.
At the outset, this isn’t a book directly aimed at real estate investors. If you’re looking for a book geared more towards real estate investing, Bigger Pockets has a lot of books better suited for that. Instead, this is a book aimed towards the vast majority of people simply looking to purchase a primary residence.
The short of it is that this is an excellent book that will help guide first-time home buyers and anyone else who is looking to purchase a home and wants to make sure they’re doing things in a smart way.
How First Time Home Buyer Is Organized
First-Time Home Buyer is organized into three parts with 13 chapters. Here’s how the book is laid out:
- Part 1: Home Buying Strategy
- Is buying a house a good investment?
- Understanding exit options
- How to take control of appreciation
- Analyzing rental opportunities
- Part 2: Before You Buy
- Preparing to purchase
- Your loan
- Choosing the best lender
- Hiring the right agent
- Part 3: Buying A House
- Listings, viewings, and starting your search
- Making an offer
- The home inspection
- Under contract
- After you close
In part one, Mindy and Scott guide you through a basic home buying strategy. They teach you how to think about a home purchase and where you should be financially before you purchase a home. Importantly, the book also teaches you to think about what you’ll do with your home after you’re done with it. Too often, people buy their houses without thinking about what will happen later. Will you rent or sell your home? How can you make your home more valuable? Is your home one that could make a good rental property? All of this is addressed in this section of the book.
Part two gets into the things you need to think about before you actually get into your house hunt. The authors walk you through how a mortgage works, how to go about picking a lender, and how to find the right real estate agent to help you with your home purchase (hint – it’s not about finding a random agent on a bus stop).
Finally, in part three, Mindy and Scott go through the actual home-buying process. They give you advice on how to narrow your home search, how to make an offer in a smart way, and all the things that go into the home buying process after your offer is accepted (i.e. the inspection, closing, etc).
Overall, this book is very well organized and easy to read. The book flows logically and is a good reference for anyone looking to buy their first home. One very helpful thing is at the end of each chapter, the authors give you a chapter summary which gives you the key points from each chapter. This makes it easy to jump back to each chapter if you’re looking for a quick reference.
Key Takeaways From First Time Home Buyer
There’s a lot in this book to cover – far more than I can cover in a blog post. That said, here are my key takeaways from First Time Home Buyer.
Be Realistic In Your Home Search. When my wife and I started our house search, we really didn’t know what the market was like. First Time Home Buyer teaches you to do some research before you buy your house and define the house you want. A great strategy that the book recommends is to search for homes in the area you want that have sold within the last 6 months. This will give you an idea of what a house with your criteria will realistically cost and give you a sense of what is a good deal and what isn’t.
Don’t Give Yourself False Timelines. You want to buy your home from a position of strength. The mistake a lot of us make is we buy our homes on short timelines that we give ourselves. Maybe our lease is ending soon. Or we have a baby on the way. If you go into home buying with a short timeline, you’re asking for trouble. Instead, give yourself a reasonably long timeline. You’ll make better decisions and get better deals this way.
Think About Exit Options. Perhaps the biggest takeaway I got from First Time Home Buyer is to think about what you’ll do with your house in the future. With any house, you basically have three options after you buy it: (1) live in the house forever; (2) turn it into a rental property; or (3) sell it for a profit. Most people approach a house thinking they’ll live in it forever. In my experience, this doesn’t happen often – I think it’s rare for anyone to buy a house once and live in it forever. Looking back at my own childhood, my family lived in three different houses. That means, in the first 18 years of my life, my family moved, on average, every 6 years.
Given this, we need to think about what we’ll do if we don’t live in our house forever. Turning your home into a rental property is an easy way to get your foot into real estate investing. But if you want to do this, you need to buy a home where the numbers make sense. You can also sell your home for a profit. But profit isn’t guaranteed either – you need to plan.
Prepare Calmly To Act Aggressively. This is one of my favorite lines in the book. In essence, preparing calmly to act aggressively means you’ve already taken care of everything else. You have a reasonably long purchase timeline. Your finances are in order. You know what type of home you’re looking for and what numbers make it a good deal. When the time comes, you’ll be ready to pounce!
Final Thoughts
After six months of searching and countless rejected offers, my wife and I finally had an offer accepted. We’re excited about it. And this book ended up being an invaluable resource while we went through the home buying process.
If you’re looking for a more advanced book about real estate investing, this probably isn’t the book for you. But if you’re looking for a simple, straightforward book that will teach you how buying a home works and how you should go about doing it, then First Time Home Buyer is an excellent book that should be on your shelf.
Remember, a house is most people’s largest asset. And it’s likely the most expensive thing any of us will ever buy. You don’t necessarily need to be an expert in everything when you buy your house, but you should take the time to at least learn something before you buy your house. Spending $12 on a book like this is going to be well worth the investment.
If you’re interested, you can purchase the book on Amazon.
More Recommended Ebike/Scooters
Check out these other ebikes/scooters I've had the chance to do a review for:
- GEN3 Outcross Bike – The GEN3 Outcross is a solid, affordable fat tire ebike that does a good job of doing what I need it to do. It works great for city riding, giving me a smooth ride in all conditions. It’s works really well as a winter ebike since the fat tires give it good traction over snow and ice. Check out my GEN3 Outcross Review.
- Himiway Escape Bike – The Himiway Escape is an interesting bike for anyone looking for a moped-style ebike. If you’re a gig economy worker, the Himiway Escape is particularly interesting and it’s possible to think of it as an investment, especially if you can opt to do deliveries with the Himiway versus using a car. It’s not cheap, but you can definitely make your money back when you compare the mileage you’ll put on your car versus using an ebike. Check out my Himiway Escape Bike Review.
- Espin Sport Bike – The Espin Sport is a good ebike for someone who is looking for an ebike that feels and rides more like a regular bike. There are many ebikes that are really only bikes in name. In reality, they’re basically electric mopeds. The Espin Sport, by contrast, is a bike you could probably ride without the battery and you’d feel like you’re just riding a regular bike. Check out my Espin Sport Review.
- Varla Eagle One Scooter – The Varla Eagle One is an excellent scooter that can make sense for a lot of people. It can work as a primary mode of transportation. You can use it to work on gig economy apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub. And it can also be a recreational vehicle if you’d prefer to use it for that. Check out my Varla Eagle One Review.
- Fucare H3 Scooter – The Fucare H3 is a fun scooter and I’ve enjoyed testing it out. For a daily commuter or quick trips or errands, the Fucare H3 is probably the scooter I’ll use. It’s portable and easy to maneuver, so it’s just easier to take on the road when I need it. Check out my Fucare H3 Scooter Review.
More Recommended Investing App Bonuses
For additional investing app bonuses, be sure to check out the ones below:
- M1 Finance ($10) – This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $10 for opening an account. Check out my M1 Finance Referral Bonus – Step-By-Step Guide.
- SoFi Invest ($25) – SoFi Invest is an easy brokerage account bonus that you can earn with just a few minutes of work. Use my SoFi Invest referral link, fund your SoFi Invest brokerage account with $100 and you’ll get $25 of free stock. I also have a step-by-step guide for the SoFi Invest referral bonus.
- Moomoo (5 free stocks) – Moomoo is a free investing app currently offering 5 free stocks (usually worth around $75-$100) if you open an account using a referral link and deposit $2,000. Read my Moomoo referral bonus guide for more information.
- Webull (5 free stocks) – Webull also gives you 5 free stock valued between $3-$3,000 each if you open an account using my referral link. Here’s a guide I wrote about how to earn your free stocks using Webull.
- Robinhood (1 free stock) – Robinhood gives you a free stock valued between $2.50-$225 if you open an account using my referral link.
- Public (1 free stock) - Public gives you a free stock valued between $3-$70 if you open an account using my referral link.
More Recommended Bank Account Bonuses
If you’re looking for more easy bank bonuses, check out the below options. These bonuses are all easy to earn and have no fees or minimum balance requirements to worry about.
- Chime ($100) - Chime is a free bank account that offers a referral bonus if you use a referral link and complete a direct deposit of $200 or more. In practice, any ACH transfer into this account triggers the bonus. This bonus is easy to earn and posts instantly, so you’ll know if you met the requirements as soon as you move money into the account. I wrote a step-by-step guide on how to earn your Chime referral bonus that I recommend you check out.
- Upgrade ($100) – Upgrade is a free checking account that’s currently offering a $100 referral bonus if you open an account and complete three debit card transactions. These bonus terms are easy to meet, so it’s well worth doing this bonus as soon as you can. Importantly, this bonus says that it’s now scheduled to end on October 31, 2022. As long as you get your account opened before October 31st, you should be eligible. Here’s a post I wrote with more details: Upgrade $100 Referral Bonus – Step By Step Directions.
- SoFi Money ($350) – SoFi Money is a free checking account from SoFi. They’re currently offering a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi account with a referral link and deposit $10. You can also make an additional $300 as well if you complete a direct deposit. This is a good bank that is also 100% free, so you won’t have to worry about managing this account. Here’s a post I wrote with instructions on how to earn your SoFi Money bonus: SoFi Money Referral Bonus: Step By Step Guide.
- Fifth Third Bank ($250) – This offer is limited to customers in the following states: Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, West Virginia, and South Carolina. If you don’t live in one of those states, you won’t be able to open an account online but you can still open an account in-branch if you happen to be visiting a city that has a branch. This is a fairly easy bank bonus to earn, especially since there are plenty of data points showing what will trigger the direct deposit requirement. In addition, you can open the Fifth Third Momentum Checking bank account, which comes with no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements. Read my guide on this bonus here.
- Current ($50) – Current is a free fintech bank that’s offering new users a $50 referral bonus after signing up for an account using a referral link.Current is an easy bonus to earn and also gives you access to three savings accounts that pay you 4% interest on up to $2,000. That means you can put away up to $6,000 earning 4% interest. That’s very good and makes Current an account I recommend to everyone. Check out my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Current Bank bonus.
- OnJuno ($100) – OnJuno is a fintech/neobank that is currently offering a $100 referral bonus if you open an account using a referral link and complete a direct deposit of $250 or more. The account has no fees or minimum balance requirements. Even better, the bonus posts immediately after you meet the requirements. If you can meet the direct deposit requirements, OnJuno is an easy bank bonus that’s worth snagging. Check out my OnJuno referral bonus guide here.
- Varo ($50) – Varo is a free fintech banking app similar to Chime or Current. It’s currently offering a $50 bonus to new users that open a new Varo account with a referral link. The bonus for this bank is very easy to meet, all you need to do is spend $20 within 30 days of opening your Varo account. Check out my step-by-step guide to learn how to earn this bonus.
- Fairwinds Credit Union ($100) – Fairwinds Credit Union is offering a referral bonus for users that sign up using a referral link. Fairwinds has no fees or minimum balance, so this is a particularly easy bonus to earn. Since this is a smaller credit union, my gut instinct tells me this offer won’t be around long, so if you’re in a position to meet the bonus requirements, grab this bonus before it’s gone. Here is my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Fairwinds Credit Union bonus.
- Novo Bank ($40) - Novo bank is a free business checking account that’s currently offering a $40 bonus if you open a Novo business checking account using a referral link. In addition to being a good bank bonus, Novo is also a good business checking account. It has no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements and operates a good app and website. Indeed, it’s the business checking account I currently use for this blog. Check out my post on how to easily open a Novo account.
- Spiral ($50) – Spiral is a fintech bank that's currently offering new customers a $50 signup bonus after opening a free checking account with them. The Spiral referral bonus is especially good because it's a free checking account and doesn't require a direct deposit to earn the bonus. Here is my step-by-step guide on how to earn your Spiral Bank bonus.
- One Finance ($50) – One Finance is a fintech bank that’s currently offering a $50 signup bonus if you open an account using a One Finance referral link and have a direct deposit of $250 or more. This is a completely free bank account with no minimum balance requirement, so if you can meet the requirements, it’s worth doing. Check out my One Finance referral bonus guide here.
- Albert ($150) – If you can manage to do a real direct deposit, Albert is an easy account you can use to earn a referral bonus. Here’s a review about Albert I wrote. And here’s a step-by-step guide on how to earn your Albert referral bonus.
- Netspend ($20 + 5% Interest Savings Account) – Netspend is a company that provides 5% interest savings accounts. If you sign up using my referral link, you’ll get a $20 signup bonus once you make your first deposit into your Netspend account of $40 or more. That means you get a 5% interest savings account and a free $20 to start! Make sure to check out my in-depth guide on how to set up these accounts.
Kevin is an attorney and the blogger behind Financial Panther, a blog about personal finance, travel hacking, and side hustling using the gig economy. He paid off $87,000 worth of student loans in just 2.5 years by choosing not to live like a big shot lawyer.
Kevin is passionate about earning money using the gig economy and you can see all the ways he makes extra income every month in his side hustle reports.
Kevin is also big on using the latest fintech apps to improve his finances. Some of Kevin's favorite fintech apps include:
- SoFi Money. A really good checking account with absolutely no fees. You'll get a $25 referral bonus if you open a SoFi Money account with a referral link, and an additional $300 if you complete a direct deposit.
- Upgrade Bank. Upgrade is a free checking account that’s currently offering a $100 referral bonus if you open an account and complete three debit card transactions. These bonus terms are easy to meet, so it’s well worth doing this bonus as soon as you can. Note that it’s now scheduled to end on October 31, 2022.
- Novo Bank. Novo bank is a free business checking account that’s currently offering a $40 bonus if you open a Novo business checking account using a referral link. It’s the business checking account I currently use for this blog.
- M1 Finance. This is a great robo-advisor that has no fees and allows you to create a customized portfolio based on your risk tolerance. You also get $10 for opening an account.
- Personal Capital. One of best free apps you can use to monitor your portfolio and track your net worth. This is one of the apps I use to track my financial accounts.
Feel free to send Kevin a message here.
It’s crazy how important the real estate asset class has been. One person I know bought a house LITERALLY on February 2020. He had no clue the world was going to shut down, etc. His house is now up in value almost 100% in just a single year.
Real estate is a very important asset class!