Teen shares the 'hardest' thing about buying her first home at just 19

A 19-year-old has opened up about her experiences of buying her first home, including the things that she found difficult.

Homeownership feels like something that most of us aspire to achieve during our lives, but it seems to be getting gradually harder.

House prices seem to be going up but the average salary isn't matching it... which leads to a lot of issues.

And no, forgoing Netflix and avocados won't mean you suddenly have enough cash to buy a house.

Buying houses can be tricky nowadays. Credit: Martin Barraud/Getty

Anyway, one 19-year-old is proving everything I've just said wrong and she's got her own home.

Maddie Miller has paid off 65% of her mortgage on her home in outback Western Australia, per News.com.au.

Maddie has managed to reduce her mortgage to an impressive $160,000 - well below the national average.

According to Finder, the average home loan in Australia for 2024 stands at a staggering $607,963.

Maddie generates an income of between $25,000 and $30,000 a month through OnlyFans, allowing her to make substantial progress on her mortgage. At 18, she decided to invest her earnings in something with long-term benefits and used her eligibility for the first homebuyer’s grant to purchase her first property.

She placed an $18,000 deposit on a small home in a mining town in Western Australia, with weekly repayments of $400.

This journey has been a significant learning experience for Maddie.

"I had the help of a mortgage broker but I definitely had to learn a few new things when I bought my house. I didn’t even know what a mortgage broker was when I started looking for a house to buy," she said.

With no one in her life to guide her through the home-buying process, Maddie turned to the internet. "I had to Google it," she said. Despite the steep learning curve, the most challenging aspect was the paperwork.

"The hardest part was all the paperwork involved," she admitted. However, she is thrilled with the outcome, stating: "It feels amazing. I’m so grateful to own a home at this age."

Maddie loves the freedom that owning a home brings. Credit: Jackyenjoyphotography/Getty

Now, Maddie is looking to purchase a second home. In the meantime, she lives alone and enjoys the freedom to personalize her current home.

"I’m currently living in it and I’m also in the process of renovating it. I’ve painted pretty much the entire house and I’m in the process of choosing flooring and planning bathroom renovations before I buy my second house," she explained.

The freedom to decorate and modify her home to her liking is one of the best parts of homeownership for Maddie.

"I feel completely free to do what I want with my home," she said, adding that she loves the ability to decorate in her own style. "Plus, there’s no one here to yell at me for leaving my clothes in the dryer."

Featured image credit: Martin Barraud/Getty