Home ownership is often a big goal for Deerfield clients. There’s a sense of pride that a lot of people feel when buying a home, and I get it. Home ownership is really ingrained in our culture as a goal that many people strive toward, and there are definitely benefits that come with owning versus renting. Home ownership often gives you the freedom to change things about your home or property that renting doesn’t. It also gives you more lifestyle freedom in some cases. For example, having pets in a rental might be prohibited, or it could come with some hefty pet fees each month.

However, a lot of people are worried about buying a home when they’re still carrying student loan debt. The truth is that, if you’re a young professional (particularly if you are a physician), you may be paying down your student loans for several years.

It can be emotionally draining to put all of your other savings goals on hold until your student debt is out of the way. So, asking whether or not you should buy a home while you still have loans isn’t necessarily the right question. Instead, figuring out whether or not buying a home fits into your financial plan, and matches up with your lifestyle values, is a good first step. Let’s start by walking through a few home-buying rules to follow.

The 5 Year Rule

It’s a pretty common financial rule that, if you’re going to buy a home, you need to wait until you know you’ll spend five or more years living there.