You're planning on a move to a very high cost of living area, San Diego, in a state with lots of taxes. I'd rethink that before anything else.

Also, no one tells first time home buyers that it's not just about being able to afford the down payment, mortgage, taxes and insurance; it's about being able to afford to LIVE in the house. And a house is a constant drain on ones budget. One plumber's bill for a minor repair can easily be $250. There is ALWAYS something, whether the house is brand new (more likely if this was a builder-grade house - always done with corners cut), or a very old house. But all houses have them.

Your annual income needs to come up considerably in order to afford a house in this area. It will be tight even in an area with a low cost of living. That should be your first priority - finding an area you like that has a low cost of living (house prices, taxes etc).

Your best bet would be to do what you're already planning on doing and that is to save as much as you can. You're really too early in the process to do much more than that since who knows what will happen with VA loans several years from now, or even what will be happening with the market or what type of job you get. As I'm sure you and your GF realize, plan for the future (like you're doing) but be flexible.

And thank you for your service.

Thank you and your GF for serving our country.

I would look at the average income of families living in the area you are thinking about moving to. See if you really can make it on your projected salary. I know where I live that a family can live on 60/70K a year, but there isn't much room for extras after necessities are covered especially if you want to own a large home. I am guessing Cali is a much higher cost of living. Having 300K saved up in my area would get you a very nice house, or a moderate house with some acreage pretty much completely paid off, though the tax benefits of having a mortgauge can be worth not using your entire savings.

If you are able to save 50K/yr over the next 4 years (not counting Afganistan) you must have an annual income way more than the 60-70K a year right now. Can you continue your current income in Cali? At least long enough to get the house completely paid for?

I would strongly urge you to seek advice from the forum linked below. I'd only consider the idea of building a home after you've got your 'financial house' in order.

https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/index.php

It's great you are able to save up so much money over the next few years. However, since you currently have "minimal savings," those funds should really be earmarked for an emergency fund, long term savings and investments.

The thought of you dumping your entire life savings of $300K into a new home, in a HCOL area, would scare me. Especially with an estimated annual household income of only $60K-$70K.

Good luck to you.

Thank you for your service!

Save save save, and also determine what a comfortable monthly budget is for you. Track what you spend, and determine what a comfortable monthly payment (mortgage, taxes, insurance) would feel like. Then you can figure out how much to spend on a home based on that number. For us, that number is always lower than what a bank would approve us for/loan us. ;-)

Also allow for future expenses and needs (will you have more children?). We also wanted to make sure we could make the house payments on one income (one income by choice or by no choice).

Spend some time getting to know some of the areas you are interested in, and what your priorities are (do you want to be in a neighborhood, is being in a good school district a top priority, etc). When my husband and I got married, we had dreams of building a custom home on some land, away from the city and out of suburbia. Our visions and goals have since completely changed.

Thanks everyone so much you all have been an amazing help San Diego is just one of the many places that we have discussed moving to and it was high on our list. However I agree with a lot of you that a 60/70k income would be very hard to live on in San Diego or in its surrounding areas. Just to clarify our income annualy combined would be 60+70k=110k. And we have no ambitions what so ever in throwing our life savings into the house no worries there. We are still young I'm 25 and my girlfriend 26 so we have plenty of time to make a decision but I felt it was better to get a sort of plan going for what we want to do thank you so much again for the help guys !

It's terrific that you and your girlfriend are such good savers at such young ages! That will be a lifetime pattern if you stay true to it and it will serve you well.

The best decision you can make for your post-military life together is to find a part of the country with a low cost of living. Having some discretionary income makes a HUGE difference in ones quality of life. Buying a house that is LESS expensive than what one thinks one can afford, will also serve you well. Living paycheck to paycheck and wondering how one is going to fix a bad toilet in a bathroom with no money for a plumber, is not pleasant. Ask me how I know!

And marry that girlfriend before you start buying property together, or else buy it in your name only, and you pay the expenses on it. Don't complicate your life needlessly!

lol it's definitely in the plans maybe in about 2 years for sure and thank you very much!

I just want to say congratulations for already being so far ahead of the curve. 300k in the bank before you are 30 is admirable. Right now, I would not make any commitments, but continue to save and investigate potential areas with acreage, septic/sewar and water. I wouldnt make any decisions at this point, because at your age, a lot could change in the next couple years. You may have bigger and better opportunities elsewhere. I would just continue to save and educate yourself on possibilities for land, etc. Thank you for your service to our country!

San Diego is of course a very nice place to live (not too hot, not too cold, not humid, not wet, not icy) but it comes at a price. Wages are somewhat higher so you might be underestimating a little but house prices are among the highest in the nation. Many households end up buying a house that is 3-4 times their annual income, and if your dream is a true custom home there just aren't many lots in San Diego to build on especially if you want to keep it WELL under $1M.