Close your eyes and picture that dream home that you’ve been pining for. The one with the wrap around porch and oasis in the back. Or perhaps a trendy industrial loft with exposed brick interiors. Let me guess, it’s a cabin in the woods, with squirrels as your neighbors and a lakeside frontage. Everyone has a different but solid idea of what they are looking for in a dream home.

 What’s holding you back?

 Most of us will say the price tag is the one thing separating us from living in a house that we love. But why should we deny ourselves this pleasure and live out our lives in subpar living arrangements? There have to be ways in which we can shorten the time it takes to attain the home we always wanted.

 And, luckily, there are.

 Decrease your down payment

For the bank to even give you a mortgage in the first place, you’ll need to have saved up some money for a down payment. This first step already limits many hopeful home owners before they even start visiting those open houses. Private mortgage insurance lets buyers get a conventional mortgage without a large down payment, which lowers the “entry standards” for most dream home hopefuls.

Save on mortgage insurance

When you shop around for your mortgage, don’t forget to put mortgage insurance on your list. Most people just accept whatever their lender gives them, not knowing that they can look for an alternate provider for their insurance. You can actually decrease your monthly costs by quite a bit of money, up to 45% if you find a good deal! Why work so hard on saving money in your everyday life when one easy step can save you thousands of dollars over the life of your mortgage!

 Take in tenants/rent the place out

If you are eager to live in the house of your dreams but can’t quite afford it or the monthly payments for it, consider taking in tenants or renting your home out when you are away. Basement apartments or room rentals are quite popular in big cities and can be a great way to subsidize your costs for a while. Then, once you are financially fit to support the home yourself, you can give up renting. This is also a great solution for a cottage or vacation property. List your property on a forum or on AirBnB and let it out when you aren’t using it so that it generates money when you aren’t there. This will allow you to use it whenever you need but keeps it from standing empty and costing you money when you aren’t using it.

 Transform your home into your dream home

Truthfully, it is rare to find an ideal dream home standing as is. Most of the time, you’ll need to tweak a few things to get the result that you want. In that case, maybe you should start looking for “potential dream homes” in your price range and then transform them yourself. Many people find such transformations very satisfying and rewarding, especially since they get more control over the result than if they were going to go pick a house that is already finished. This can also give you the opportunity to buy it at a lower price and as the funds come it, refurnish it bit by bit so that you get the effect that you desire.

Thanks to these four tips, you can start living your dream life in your dream home sooner, without waiting a lifetime to attain it!