How we bought two properties by the time we were 21

Buying our first home was the biggest financial decision we had ever made and at the time, we desperately wished there was a realistic “how-to” guide written by regular, young people.

We bought our first property over ten years ago. The market was different, prices were lower, lending rules were different. Cost of living wasn’t what it is now so I want to say this clearly: It is genuinely harder for young people today.

Deposits are bigger. Rents are higher. Groceries cost more. Interest rates fluctuate. Wages haven’t kept up at the same pace as property in many areas. So if you’re reading this feeling behind, you’re not lazy, and you’re not failing. The landscape has shifted.

That said, the principles haven’t. Discipline. Clarity. Teamwork. Sacrifice. Long-term thinking. Those things still matter, and they still work.

Goal setting

We set a goal in our teens to own our first home by 21. It wasn’t because we had some secret shortcut. It was because we were intentional about saving, aligned on what we wanted, and willing to make trade-offs early.

We met when we were 18 and, very fortunately, we were on the same page about most of our life goals. The only goal we disagreed on? Fancy cars.

One of us thinks spending a large amount of money on a depreciating asset is ridiculous. The other one believes life is short and sometimes you buy the candle… or the car. (Hint: the one who CONSTANTLY buys candles is the fancy car culprit.) There’s a saying, “when you know, you just know,” and that’s how it was for us. We knew we were building a life together, so we started making financial moves with that future in mind.

At one point, the fancy car culprit (spoiler alert: it’s Iryna) used the deposit she had saved for a home to buy a car, a sensible one, thankfully. That allowed the sensible one (spoiler alert: Dom) to sell his car (which was moments away from financially imploding) and redirect his deposit toward buying the house.

Was it textbook financial advice? Probably not. Was it strategic teamwork? Absolutely.

We decided not to move straight into the first property. Instead, we used what we had left to build a low-spec home that we could enjoy for years and eventually rent out. We both worked early and often. Dom started cleaning dishes at a local restaurant. I worked retail and taught Ukrainian to kids on weekends. After school, we both picked up second and third jobs. Dom landed his first career role while still juggling hospitality shifts.

We lived with our parents until 22 and used that low-cost season intentionally. But we didn’t save every cent. We travelled. We bought clothes. We went out with friends. We just did it consciously.

At the time, our rough budget split looked like this:

• 50% Needs & obligations
• 30% Savings
• 20% Lifestyle & fun

Before buying, we asked ourselves some important questions. This shaped every decision that followed:

• Why do we actually want to own property?
• Is this for investment or lifestyle?
• Do we want flexibility to move interstate or overseas?
• What are we likely to earn in 3–5 years?
• Are we prepared to share house or sacrifice comfort short term?

So how did we actually do it?

1. Create a Budget

Before we even looked seriously at properties, we needed to understand:

• What repayments would realistically look like?
• Whether we could survive interest rate increases?
• What would happen if one of us lost income?

Budgeting helped us determine what we could afford, not just what the bank would lend. This was non-negotiable and we still use the same budgeting system today. If you want a breakdown of exactly how we structured our budget before buying, I’ve written a separate post outlining the system we used and how it prepared us for loan approval.

By the time we purchased our second home, we were both on entry-level full-time incomes. We had no kids and no debt, which made us “low risk” borrowers. That meant we could borrow a lot more than we should borrow.

And this is important: Just because a bank approves you for a certain amount doesn’t mean you should use it. Base your decision on repayments you can comfortably manage, not the maximum loan offered.

2. Find the Right Property (For Your Stage of Life)

For our first home, we deliberately chose something that could function as an investment. We had no idea where our careers would take us in 3–5 years, so flexibility mattered. That gave us options:

• Live in it
• Rent it out
• Renovate
• Develop
• Sell

For our second purchase, we considered renovating an established home but decided to build instead because the cost difference was similar. We built with a 5–10 year vision, practical, rentable, family-friendly. We chose base-level finishes to avoid overcapitalising and planned to add character ourselves later. It wasn’t about building a forever dream home. It was about building a stepping stone.

3. Engage Professional Support

We spoke with multiple mortgage brokers before choosing one. This was one of the smartest early moves we made. A good mortgage broker will:

• Help you understand borrowing capacity
• Explain different loan structures
• Compare interest rates
• Identify risks
• Clarify deposit requirements

They will also ask for everything, income, debts, credit cards, kids, relationship status - because all of it affects your eligibility. When we bought, we had:

• No debt
• No children
• Stable full-time incomes

That helped. A lot. But again, just because you can borrow it doesn’t mean you should. Work backwards from what feels safe and sustainable.

If we were 18 again in today’s market? We might:

• Take longer.
• Consider rentvesting.
• Look at different locations.
• Increase income before increasing lifestyle.
• Focus even harder on budgeting systems.

But we would still do the same foundational things. Because while the market changes, the mindset doesn’t. Budgeting wasn’t restrictive for us but it was clarifying. It showed us:

• What we could safely commit to?
• Where we were overspending?
• How quickly we could reach a deposit goal?
• Whether we were ready or just impatient?

And when we walked into meetings with brokers, we weren’t nervous or guessing. We had numbers. We had history. We had consistency. That kind of financial clarity makes a big purchase feel far less chaotic. Were we perfect? Absolutely not.

We made emotional purchases. We changed plans. We pivoted. We upgraded when we probably shouldn’t have. But we always came back to the plan. And that’s the part that compounds.