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People shopping for a new home consider many factors in deciding where to live. Figuring out how much home you can afford requires looking at home values, housing costs, loan interest rates, property taxes, and current bills. The key to ensuring you're financially ready to buy your first home is to be an educated buyer. Multiple resources save you the work in figuring out where to invest in real estate. Not one. Not two. But at least three publications reveal the thriving DFW housing market as the best place to invest in a home for first-time homebuyers. SmartAsset's Best Markets for First-Time Homebuyers A new report from SmartAsset ranks Dallas and Fort Worth as the best cities for first-time homebuyers. Dallas takes the 10th spot while Fort Worth follows behind at 11th. Considering Texas has eight of the top 25 best cities for first-time homebuyers, SmartAsset recommends buying a home in Texas. In ranking the cities, SmartAsset looks at data across 64 cities with a population of more than 300,000. The seven metrics for identifying the best cities for first-time homebuyers include:

• Average value per square foot.
• Number of HUD-approved mortgage lenders.
• Affordability based on the ratio of median income to median home price.
• Loan funding rate.
• Market volatility in standard housing process.
• Negative quarters where home prices fell.
• Homeowner stability index.

Dallas stands out with its 187 HUD-approved mortgage lenders, value per square foot of $90.58, and a loan approval rate of 67 percent. Furthermore, Dallas has had zero negative year-over-year quarters since 2012. Fort Worth has 56 mortgage lenders, the average value per square foot of $94.42, and a loan approval rate of 71 percent. The DFW housing market is one of the hotter markets with new homes available in cities around Dallas and Fort Worth. Mid-city Arlington comes in at No. 14. Where to Invest in Housing According to Forbes What's more is that the Fort Worth-Arlington area appears as No. 9 on Forbes' Where to Invest in Housing in 2018 list. In creating this list, the magazine refers to Local Market Monitor. The publication studies 320 metro areas to analyze housing indicators and growth trends. Forbes reports the average home price is $235k and they see a price growth of 11th percent after one year and 26 percent after three years. Also important is job growth and the area's two-year job growth is 5 percent. You can find new homes in DFW from Sandlin Homes in these cities as well as Celina, Joshua, North Richland Hills, and Weatherford. Best Places for First-Time Homebuyers According to Wallethub Analysts at WalletHub have studied 300 cities using 23 factors across three areas: affordability, real estate market, and quality of life. The top 30 cities include seven cities in the DFW housing market. Successful first-time homebuyers educate themselves. These articles from this Sandlin Homes blog can get you started:

• What You Need to Know As a First-Time Homebuyer
• 11 Questions to Ask Your Homebuilder
• 6 Tax Benefits of Owning a Home
• 4 Tips Before You Start House Hunting