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At 56, with my husband Earl at 60, we’ve discovered an unconventional approach to setting our children up for financial success: we buy them their first homes.
It’s a strategy that has sparked conversations — and raised eyebrows — at dinner parties. But it’s become the foundation of what we call our kids’ “Wealth Starter Kit.”
As African American parents, we’re acutely aware of both the homeownership gap and the wealth gap in the United States. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), only 44 percent of Black Americans own homes, versus 72 percent of white Americans. Federal Reserve data also show that white families have a median net worth that’s eight times that of Black families, an inequity largely driven by homeownership differences.
These stark disparities fueled our determination to give our children a financial head start.
An unexpected foray into buying property
Our journey into real estate as a family wealth-building tool started unexpectedly. In 2015, our oldest daughter, Aziza, began attending the University of Texas at Austin as a business student. She had a near full-ride scholarship as an out-of-state student from New Jersey.
But when circumstances led to the loss of her scholarship in 2016, we were suddenly facing exorbitant out-of-state tuition fees. In the 2016-17 academic year, UT Austin’s tuition costs for nonresidents was an eye-popping $39,270, versus only $11,060 for in-state students.
I jumped into research mode, looking for money-saving solutions. That’s when I stumbled upon a game-changing discovery: Texas allows new property owners to pay in-state tuition rates, provided a student meets a few other criteria, including intent to stay in the state after they graduate. That latter requirement was a no-brainer: Aziza loved Austin and was adamant about wanting to reside in Texas permanently.
But the decision to buy property for a 19-year-old? That was a different matter. Was it financially viable? Would it even work, in terms of passing muster with the state of Texas? I was convinced the answer to those questions was yes. My husband needed more convincing but, ultimately, he agreed that it made sense, since it would allow us to cut our daughter’s college costs by more than $80,000 over the course of her junior and senior years.
So in January 2017, during Aziza’s sophomore year, Earl and I took the plunge and purchased a $210,000 two-bedroom condo in Austin. The strategy worked as intended: The following year Aziza qualified for in-state tuition — saving us tens of thousands of dollars.
Proof of concept
We replicated this home buying strategy after our son, Jakada, enrolled at North Carolina State University in 2018. Just before his sophomore year, we bought him a two-bedroom townhouse in Raleigh for $158,000. Once again, our child secured in-state tuition rates after he lived in the property for one year.
Aziza, 27, and Jakada, 24, have now both graduated college and are thriving in their respective fields.
Our youngest daughter, Alexis, is 18 and studying political science as a freshman at North Carolina A&T State University, a public HBCU in Greensboro. We’re looking into buying her a place near campus next year.
Now, I know what you’re thinking: “This sounds great, but it can’t possibly be feasible for most families.” Well, I’m certainly not suggesting that our approach is a one-size-fits-all solution, and it does require significant financial resources and planning.
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