Courtesy of David Triana.
- PR account executive David Triana, 27, moved back in with his parents in Clermont, Florida, in 2019.
- He said that high rents drove him home, and mortgage rates have locked him out of homeownership.
- He and his fiancé have saved up $20,000 for a home purchase, but he still can't afford to move out.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with David Triana, a Florida native, who moved back in with his parents in 2019 to save up money for a home purchase. He and his fiancé want to live in Davenport or Clermont, Florida, where the median home sales prices are $363,000 and $475,000, respectively, according to Redfin. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
My name is David Triana and I am 27 years old. I'm an account executive at a PR firm and I currently live in Clermont, Florida, a town that is 45 minutes southwest of downtown Orlando.
My family is Cuban. My dad was born in Puerto Rico to Cuban parents, and my mom came to the United States in the early 1970s. They purchased their first home together in 2001, eventually selling it and purchasing two more properties.
Growing up, I wouldn't say that homeownership was preached to my siblings and me. It was more so an example that we were encouraged to follow.
Courtesy of David Triana.
I've been on the hunt for a home for the last few years. However, due to inflation, rising home prices, and changing my career, I've been living with my parents since 2019.
My fiancé lives out of state in Texas, and we are saving up money to purchase a home in Davenport or Clermont, Florida. But even with a savings of about $20,000 and dual incomes, we still don't feel like we can afford homeownership, especially as mortgage rates grow.
I couldn't afford to keep renting in the Orlando area
In 2019, I was living in a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment in Winter Park, which is near downtown Orlando. I lived with two roommates, and at first, we were paying about $1,300 each month for rent. However, our rent eventually increased to $1,600.
At the time, I was working part-time at Disney World and was earning around $11.40 an hour. I wasn't making a lot of money, so I still needed help from my parents to cover rent.
My parents are very supportive. They always told me if I needed any help, I was welcome to stay with them. I figured, instead of trying to scrape by, it would be much easier to move back in with my family.
Courtesy of David Triana.
Nobody in their twenties wants to do this, but if you're trying to buy a house or not get into insurmountable debt, it feels like the most logical thing to do.
The real-estate market in Orlando is hot
The greater Orlando area has become busier and there's a lot of new real-estate development. As more people move into the metro, rental prices have increased.
In the past, a one-bedroom apartment was typically priced around $1,800 a month. Today, you can't really find a one-bedroom apartment for less than $2,000 a month, and two-bedrooms are priced between $2,000 to $2,500 a month.
It begs the question: If you're trying to save up money to purchase a home, at what point do you stop throwing away thousands of dollars on rent?
Courtesy of David Triana.
Earlier this year, I toured some apartments around town. I came to the conclusion that I would really be doing myself a disservice If I were to move out of my parent's home.
Can I afford another apartment? Yes. But would it be a smart decision? No. All of the money that I would be spending on rent could be put towards a down payment on a house instead.
I'm discouraged but remain hopeful
I can be impulsive, but to me, homeownership is the one thing I really need to make sure I'm doing right.
My fiancé and I are waiting for the right time to purchase a home, but it continues to get delayed as mortgage rates climb. It's honestly discouraging.
If the real estate market in Florida was more stable and mortgage rates were back down to 3% and 4%, I think we would probably have been homeowners for at least a year by now.
I haven't given up on buying a home because I know that we are so close to making it a reality. We have the familial support and salaries to make it happen.
Courtesy of David Triana.
Our focus right now is to continue saving money for a down payment and other expenses that are associated with purchasing a home. We're also going to wait until rates come back down to more affordable levels.
We're waiting for the right time and the perfect home
As my fiancé and I now have higher salaries than when I initially moved in with my parents and have built up savings, our budget for a home purchase has grown. We hope to spend between $300,000 and $400,000 on our home.
We are considering buying a home in either Davenport or Clermont. Davenport is about 30 minutes from Disney World and I think the area is going to become pretty popular. There are a lot of developments there, and many single-family homes are available for sale in the low $300,000s.
We want to buy a home that has three to four bedrooms and three bathrooms. We both have remote jobs, so I really want an office. We plan to have children someday, so we also want a home that will last for a good while.
In situations like this, I'm an eternal optimist. I have to believe that sooner rather than later the perfect opportunity will come about for us. After all, our goal is, and will continue to be, becoming homeowners.