When I was 25, I bought a three-family house in Brooklyn, New York with a down payment of just 3.5%. I was able to do this on a starting salary of $25,000 (which was $35,000 by the time I actually purchased), thanks to something called an FHA mortgage. The income from this house has allowed me to live rent free and even make money each month! This wasn’t rocket science – I had simply done my research and saved what I could for a few years – but so many people my age were shocked, as if I’d pulled off an impossible stunt. What I realized is that young professionals are so intimidated by real estate, and more importantly, so misinformed about their options, that they don’t realize how accessible it is to them. And indeed, how accessible it is to you.