Real Estate|7th Time’s a Charm for a First-Time Buyer Plagued by Bidding Wars

Growing up, Lorena Waters thought the path to adulthood was college, a rental while saving money in her 20s, then a two-story house with an attached garage. Now 34, Ms. Waters spent a decade saving for a down payment, working multiple jobs throughout her 20s rather than spending weekends at birthday parties or bars before becoming a federal employee. She also lived in a string of attic and basement apartments on Long Island where the rent was cheap, she said. By her mid-30s, it was time to level up.

Ms. Waters began looking for a home to buy in the spring of 2025. What she couldn’t control in her timeline was the housing market she entered, where the so-called starter home has all but disappeared among rising costs and competition. It took her seven tries to finally close on a house.

“First-time home buyers are now often up against all-cash buyers who are more likely to be investors, but they’re also more likely to be baby boomers who could be wanting to downsize or looking for that entry-level property,” said Jessica Lautz, the deputy chief economist at the National Association of Realtors.

Ms. Waters’s wish list included a home in the same school district she attended in Long Island, two floors, a fireplace and a basement. With Andrea Parks, an agent with Douglas Elliman, she searched for homes around $500,000, hoping for more than two bedrooms and at least one and a half bathrooms. Here is the trajectory of her search:

Bid 1: Picture-Perfect Money Pit

A three-bedroom house with a porch swing that charmed Ms. Waters had a deal-breaking crack in the foundation that was found during the inspection.