Amy purchased her first house at Grand Rapids, Michigan when she was 23. Two years later, Amy has sold the house and moved to Pittsburgh. Two houses in two years for a Millennial: This Millennial isn’t sacrificing mobility to own a home.

The relocation shuffle

Amy was happy in her first home and made friends in Grand Rapids. However, an opportunity presented itself that was too good not to take. Recently, she moved to Pittsburgh and is now a regional manager of sales for a major food distributor.

Before she moved, she had to experience the ups and downs in both selling and buying houses in two different states.

Selling your Michigan first home

“Lucky for me, Grand Rapids has a shortage of homes for sale and a lot of buyers. I didn’t have a chance to make any improvements on my house, a farmhouse built in 1904, but I did add a simple deck and lots of flowers and new bushes. It has more curb appeal than when I bought it,”Amy said. According to Amy, the hardest part of selling a house is making sure that it’s clean and ready for potential buyers.

Amy sold her house in 2017 for $161,000. That’s $21,000 more than the 2017 price. Amy was able to accumulate equity over that time and she left with $28,000 at closing.

Pennsylvania house buying

Next, you needed to find a Pittsburgh home. Amy points out that home prices in Pittsburgh are much higher than Grand Rapids. She wanted to buy a better, more expensive house this time.

“I found one that was a little bit above my price range at $200,000. But it’s in perfect condition. I don’t have to worry about repairs or anything,”Amy says. You can also find restaurants and coffee shops within walking distance.

She explains. “I could have used all of the proceeds from the sale of my house as my down payment. But I didn’t want to drain my savings account. I used private mortgage insurance (PMI) again, so I could put less money down. I could have put 10 percent or $20,000 down, but I opted for a 5-percent down payment of $10,000 instead. My monthly payment is a little bit higher, but still affordable. Thanks to PMI, I could buy a bigger, better house and still have money in the bank.”

Are you ready now to buy a home? Are you ready to buy a house now? This calculator will help you determine: mgic.com/buynow. For more information about how mortgage insurance can reduce your down payment, visit readynest.com.