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A12 BUSINESS
Wednesday 14 december 2022
Millennial Money: Prepping to buy a

home or invest in 2023?

mends is the Neighbor-
hood Assistance Corpora-
tion of America, also known
as NACA. It’s a mortgage
program that allows work-
ing people to purchase a
home with no down pay-
ment, closing costs, fees
or stringent credit prereq-
uisites.
Members can also buy
their homes at a below-
market interest rate. The
program is currently in 28
states and the District of
Columbia.
Buying a home in 2023
Fresh seafood is shown for sale at a grocery store, Wednesday, could also be more at-
July 27, 2022, in Surfside, Fla. tainable if you’re willing
Associated Press to get a roomie, says Joc-
By ELIZABETH AYOOLA points four times this year. elyn Wright , a CFP and re-
of NerdWallet This, coupled with housing tirement income certified
It has been quite the shortages, has driven the professional at PF Wealth
year. In 2022, we’ve lived national median price of Management Group in
Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylva-
through high inflation, homes above $400,000 for
stock market lows, housing the first time, according to nia. This is something she
did with her sister in 2017.
market frenzies and ongo- the National Association of
ing Federal Reserve rate Realtors. “It’s not going to be for-
ever necessarily, but this
hikes. Although we don’t Homeownership may still
have a crystal ball to pre- be an attainable goal, gave us the opportunity to
have our own home, and
dict what will happen to but you might have to
the economy next year, make some sacrifices, we can leverage the eq-
uity and all of that going
we could use this year’s says Zaneilia Harris, a certi-
events as a guide: Things fied financial planner and forward,” she says.
HOW DIVERSE IS MY PORT-
may continue to be rocky. president of Harris & Har-
If homeownership and in- ris Wealth Management FOLIO?
This year hasn’t been the
vesting are on your 2023 Group in Upper Marlboro,
goals list, here are some Maryland. greenest for investors — at
the start of December, the
questions to ask yourself “You need to evaluate
before whipping out your what you are willing to give S&P 500 was down more
than 15% this year. The
spreadsheet, money apps up in space in order to own
or notebooks. property,” Harris says. “You market’s volatility could
understandably make in-
WHAT AM I WILLING TO may have to gradually get
SACRIFICE IN TERMS OF to where you want, as op- vestors unsure about how
SPACE? posed to just going straight to move forward. Financial
Whether you have a goal into a single-family house.” professionals say a diverse
portfolio and taking the
of buying a new home or This could mean starting
renting a new place next off with a condo or town- right amount of risk might
be steps in the right direc-
year, there’s a lot to con- house and then using the
sider. For instance, 30-year equity from the condo to tion. diversification in
Keep
fixed mortgage rates went purchase your next prop-
from an average of 3.45% erty, Harris says. mind, says Wright. Diversifi-
cation is when you invest in
in January to 6.90% in Oc- HOW CAN I MAKE HOM-
tober thanks to inflation EOWNERSHIP MORE AF- a variety of assets to man-
age risk and market volatil-
and Fed rate increases. FORDABLE?
The Fed has already raised Another portal to hom- ity.
The FTX and BlockFi col-
interest rates 75 basis eownership Harris recom-
lapses that happened in
November are a reminder
about why to avoid invest-
ing too heavily in one area.
“Unfortunately, a lot of
newer investors were very
excited about Bitcoin,
crypto, (and) all of that,
and forgot those lessons,”
Wright says. “You don’t put
your short-term money into
the market, and those rules
always apply.” q