![\"Proposal](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/z698mukn888jqo7e.jpg\")
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DUNEDIN, Fla. – Buying a home <\/a>has traditionally been part of the American dream. For many everyday Americans, it\u2019s out of reach as down payments are a major barrier.<\/p>\n The backstory:<\/p>\n According to the National Association of Realtors, the average first-time homebuyer<\/a> in the U.S. is now 40 years old. That growing challenge is driving new ideas from policymakers, including a proposal tied to retirement savings.<\/p>\n One idea gaining ground would allow people to use their 401(k) savings to help cover a down payment.<\/p>\n Alfonso DiGirolamo is the president of Digi Realty Group. His team recently rebuilt a home in Dunedin<\/a>, which suffered serious damage during Hurricane Helene<\/a>.<\/p>\n “We actually had water come up a couple feet,” DiGirolamo said. “The drywall and insulation was damaged, so we had to rip out those things.”<\/p>\n DiGirolamo supports a proposed plan from the Trump<\/a> administration that would allow homebuyers to tap into their 401(k)s for down payments without penalties.<\/p>\n What they’re saying:<\/p>\n “It\u2019s a great idea because in my world I actually use other people\u2019s 401(k)\u2019s and IRAs to help them buy homes before I do flips,” DiGirolamo said.<\/p>\n The majority of Americans can’t tap into their retirement savings before age 59\u00bd. Early withdrawals often trigger taxes, including standard income taxes along with a 10% federal penalty.<\/p>\n “If you\u2019re able to pull money out of your 401(k), you have to pay a tax,” DiGirolamo said. “That\u2019s your normal income tax rate, plus a 10% penalty on top of that.”<\/p>\n Derek Carlson, president of Realty ONE Group MVP, says many first-time buyers are struggling to save enough for down payments.<\/p>\n “It\u2019s very difficult for a lot of these first-time home buyers to purchase a home,” Carlson said. “Right now, the average down payment for a property is just over $60,000 and that\u2019s a challenge.”<\/p>\n Carlson also raised red flags regarding the long-term impact of using retirement savings to buy a home.<\/p>\n The other side:<\/p>\n “My concern is that they\u2019re forfeiting their future,” Carlson said. “Forfeiting their retirement down the road to get something now.”<\/p>\n Tatiana Zagorovski is the founder of Trio Realty Partners. She shared a similar sentiment while preaching precautions.<\/p>\n “This is an easy entrance into the housing market without considering the long-term impact,” Zagorovski said. “Without considering their financial situation.”<\/p>\n What’s next:<\/p>\n The proposal has not been finalized, as it remains under consideration by the Trump administration.<\/p>\n Financial advisors say this strategy may only work for people with strong savings and steady income.<\/p>\n The Source: Information for this story came from data provided by the National Association of Realtors, interviews with real estate experts and previous reporting on FOX 13.<\/p>\n Real Estate<\/a>Money<\/a>House and Home<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"DUNEDIN, Fla. – Buying a home has traditionally been part of the American dream. For many everyday Americans,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":583817,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[28,5457,255697,149,2066,3,147,530,1170],"class_list":{"0":"post-583816","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-personal-finance","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-consumer","10":"tag-house-home","11":"tag-lifestyle","12":"tag-money","13":"tag-news","14":"tag-personal-finance","15":"tag-personalfinance","16":"tag-real-estate"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583816","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=583816"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583816\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/583817"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=583816"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=583816"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=583816"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/vlcsnap-2026-04-13-20h40m12s016.png\")
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