Young Adults - The Fastest Growing Home Buying Segment

Doherty Moves on from 'Love'

She battles Armageddon in an upcoming miniseries, but Shannen Doherty has already weathered one storm this television season.
After the media frenzies over her exits from "Beverly Hills, 90210" and "Charmed," the actress was let go from UPN's new Thursday sitcom "Love, Inc." after making the pilot episode. Replaced in the show by Busy Philipps, Doherty has moved on to other projects like CBS' "Category 7: The End of the World," which starts Sunday, Nov. 6. A superstorm-fighting scientist in that miniseries, she claims little science is needed to understand her "Love, Inc." dismissal.
"Bottom line, it didn't work out," she states. "I'll be honest and say it was somewhat heartbreaking for me ... really, really difficult. I loved the cast." Doherty singles out "Love, Inc." co-star Holly Robinson Peete as "phenomenal, unbelievable at comedy. I think my biggest regret is not working with her more, because I know I would have learned so much from that girl."
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So what went wrong for Doherty? "Look, people make decisions. The only thing I can say is that it had nothing to do with me personally. There will always be the press people who want to write, 'Oh, she was difficult,' but I think most of the show's producers and cast went out there and defended me and said, 'That's not what the deal was.' And it wasn't.
"It was a personal decision on the part of Les Moonves (co-president and co-COO of Viacom, which owns UPN and CBS). He felt it wasn't the right fit, and whatever his reasons were, I respect them. Then he turned around and put me in 'Category 7,' so maybe to him, I'm a dramatic actress. It all boils down to faith. I have to have faith in myself and in God, and to know that if things don't work out, there's a reason. All I can do is try my hardest not to make the same mistakes I made in my youth, which I've worked extremely hard not to."
Now glad to be developing series with producing partner Gavin Polone ("Curb Your Enthusiasm," "Gilmore Girls"), Doherty also is grateful to have acted with Randy Quaid in "Category 7," so she's hardly overwhelmed with "Love, Inc."-related remorse. She reflects, "Who am I to sit here and say, 'I can't believe that didn't work out'? I have the most fortunate life anyone could ask for, and I have an amazing family and amazing friends. If one little thing goes wrong, you can't get down about it. You just pick yourself up and move forward.
"You could knock me down 30 more times and I would still get up and persevere," Doherty adds. "That is in my nature, but it also comes with passion. I love my job, and if you have passion for what you do, you're going to get right back up."

Young Adults - The Fastest Growing Home Buying Segment
When most of his peers were splurging on cars, clothes and bar outings, 19-year-old Bryan McLaughlin was shopping for his first home.
"I had a bunch of money saved up, and I was looking at cars when a friend recommended I buy a condo," he said in September.
McLaughlin, a Canton, Mich., resident, skipped college and at 17 began to work 50 hours a week at an orthodontic lab and a liquor store. By 19, he had put aside more than $20,000. With the tax incentives in mind, he decided to put all of it down on a 1,440-square-foot, $180,000 condo that overlooks a golf course.
His nest egg allowed him to secure a three-year, adjustable-rate mortgage at 5.25 percent.
"It was actually kind of nice to settle down," he said.
McLaughlin, now 21, said that after a little more than a year, his condo has appreciated more than $10,000. "I wouldn't be surprised if I make $20,000," he said.
In a real estate market of record-low interest rates and down payments that can be waived, it's no surprise that homeownership is on the rise. During the past decade, however, the rate of homeowners younger than 25 has surpassed all other age groups. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the rate of home owners who are younger than 25 has jumped 69 percent - from 14.9 percent in 1994 to 25.2 percent in 2004 - as teens and people in their 20s choose to own rather than rent.
Don Precour, regional sales manager for National City Mortgage, which handles McLaughlin's mortgage, said he has seen an increase in the number of younger buyers, who still account for less than 10 percent of his clientele.
"When you look at rental rates, most people are better served as homeowners," he said.
Precour said one big reason for the increase in the number of young owners is the availability of mortgage programs that require little or no down payment.
"When I bought my first home at 23, I had to put 20 percent down," Precour, 45, said recently. "With our programs, it could be ... $500 or less."
But liberal down payment options aren't the only draw for young homeowners.
When Jonathan and Angel Burt married in 2002, he wanted a house in Detroit, and she wanted a rental in the suburbs. So they applied for both, and the outcome made the decision for them.
"We couldn't get our credit approved to rent an apartment outside the city, but we got approved to own" in Detroit, said Jonathan Burt, who was 22 at the time. "It's actually kind of strange how that worked out."
Today, Jonathan Burt, 25, and Angel Burt, 26, are the proud owners of a three-bedroom bungalow. With a 20-year, fixed-rate mortgage at 8.5 percent through U.S. Bank and annual tax deductions unavailable to renters, the couple plan to live in their home for at least four more years.
According to 2004 U.S. Census figures, the majority of homeowners younger than 25 - almost 28 percent - are married.
The Burts have found, however, one down side to owning instead of renting - the absence of a landlord.
During a 2003 Super Bowl party, a guest flushed paper towels down the toilet, causing a backup into the basement and $5,000 in flood damage.
"We had to move out of the house for a month," Jonathan Burt said in September. "We really wished we had a landlord then."
Still, their home was recently appraised at $93,000, $18,000 more than what they paid three years ago.
"It's definitely worthwhile," he said of the investment.
Mark Johnson, assistant vice president and district manager of GMAC Real Estate Co., said tax deductions and equity are the major financial benefits to owning a home.
Johnson said he believes the number of mortgage clients younger than 25 is climbing, although the firm does not track its business by age groups.
"It's a lot higher than when I first started," said Johnson, who has been with the company since 1992.
While GMAC offers various down-payment options for young mortgagers, Johnson said good credit is the key to low monthly payments.
"More and more, everything is credit-score-driven," he said.
Allen Goodman, economics professor at Wayne State University, agreed.
He said mortgage companies are making home buying as easy as possible if the buyer's credit permits. Goodman said that with inexperienced buyers, there is the risk of money mismanagement.
"There can be a tendency to stretch yourself to the limit," he said, adding that variable-rate mortgages can catch young owners off guard. "You find yourself in a situation where your income isn't going up and your payments are."
For that very reason, Rachel Demonte, 24, decided to hold off on buying her first home until she picks the right mortgage plan and saves enough to feel financially secure.
A recent Eastern Michigan University grad, Demonte moved in with her parents in Novi, Mich., in June to save money and focus on her job as a Quest Diagnostics sales representative. With good credit, no student loans and about $12,000 saved up, she took on a second job as an aerobics instructor to bring in some extra income. She began to shop for condominiums in August.
As a young, single woman, Demonte would be a homeownership minority. According to 2004 U.S. Census figures, only 13 percent of homeowners younger than 25 are females living alone.
Eager to own, Demonte said recently that she can't wait to move out of her parents' house.
"It's a lack of space and a lack of freedom," she said. "Talk about trying to have a real life."
5 reasons young people are buying instead of renting:
Expectations of home appreciation.
Record-low mortgage interest rates.
Mortgages requiring little or no down payment.
Decline in discrimination by lenders has resulted in more opportunities for young, minority buyers.
Homeowner training and counseling services through public housing authorities and nonprofit firms