The thought of being a home owner seems like pie in the sky to me, but this past year I have decided that I am sick of renting and have been day dreaming more and more about owning my own house. I am 27 years old, and have 11K in college loans and around $7k in other debts to pay off, and am not exactly in the position to go out and get a mortgage right now but am starting to take some small steps towards that big day Here is a good savings goal calculator and a few tips that I’ve come across and am trying to implement in my own life:

1. Let Uncle Sam Give You a Raise
If you normally get a return at tax time then you may want to consider adjusting your tax witholding and defer the difference to a savings account.

2. Keep Track of Your Money
Grab a notebook and jot down every single purchase you make for one week. If you’ve been piddling your money away on lattes and movies then ditch the Starbucks for your coffee pot and go to the library to check out a movie when you’ve got a craving to see a flick.

3. Give Some Love to Your 401K
If your company offers 401K then head over to your Human Resources office and sign up for this tax free savings. If you’ve already signed up, then go and raise your contribution!

4. Conquer Credit Card Clutter
Go through your wallet and start cutting up any cards that may be a temptation. Negotiate your APR if it’s on the high side…most often a simple phone call can result in a phone rep lowering your APR by 5% or more if you simply take the time to ask. Sock drawer one credit card for emergencies (even better would be if you can get a debit card for your savings for emergencies).

5. Use Bigger Bills and Pay with Cash
After you pay your bills, withdraw your spending money and request big bills from your bank. The purpose of this is to change your thinking when it comes to spending…do you REALLY want to break that $100 bill for a big mac and diet coke??

Know Your Options

Got your down payment saved up and ready to start shopping around? If terms like option arm loans, CSI (cost of savings index) and ARM (adjustable rate mortages) are totally foreign to you then you should talk to friends and family who are home owners and study up on basic mortgage terminology and loan options so that you can approach a lender confidently.

Stay Focused

On a final note, I realize how hard it can be to stay focused on a goal. We all get caught up in the mundane daily existance of neesd and wants and can have a hard time committing ourselves monetarily to a goal. One idea is to cut out your “dream house” and slap it on your refrigerator otherwise….you know what they say, “out of sight, out of mind” or something like that