Money It’s tough to buy a starter home these days. Three Americans tell their stories. February 9, 2022February 9, 2022 Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, USA TODAY Comments Off on It’s tough to buy a starter home these days. Three Americans tell their stories. For potential entry-level homebuyers, the situation has gotten worse in the last year, thanks to rising inflation and mortgage rates ticking up.