Shruti Chauhan, 45, knows all too well how brutal the real estate market can be for a first-time homebuyer — she’s been searching for her first house for almost three years, putting up to three hours a day into the hunt and making over 30 bids.

“Go home, crunch the numbers, whether this is the right fit or not, both in terms of finances and whether you see yourself there,” Chauhan, a consultant who lives in New Jersey, told CBS News.

Still, this isn’t where Chauhan expected to be when she first embarked on her search for a home — without a house after years of fruitless hunting. She offered $50,000 over asking price for one home, but lost out when another bidder offered $5,000 more. She had one offer accepted, only for the house to fail inspection.

“I always thought that, yes, there will be a time where I’ll get a home. Never happened,” she said. 

Chauhan exemplifies the often demoralizing financial and other challenges confronting many first-time homebuyers, who are facing not only record home prices but also mortgage rates that are still more than double their pandemic-era lows. Many people trying to put their foot on the property ladder also find themselves bidding against current homeowners who have equity in their properties, giving them more financial power to outbid competitors. 

As a result, first-time homebuyers now make up just 32% of purchasers, down from almost 50% of the market in 2009 and near a historic low.

It’s “the perfect storm, which, of course, is affecting the first-time homebuyer the absolute worst,” said Stacy Esser, the founder of SEG Realty. 

How would a Fed rate cut impact mortgage rates?

Homebuyers recently have gotten some relief on borrowing costs, with the average interest rate on a conventional 30-year mortgage sliding to 6.29% earlier this month. That marks the lowest level since February 2023, as lenders ratchet their rates lower ahead of an expected Federal Reserve rate cut starting on September 18 in what experts say is likely to be a series of moves to ease borrowing costs.

By May 2025, the Fed’s benchmark rate could be as low as 3%, according to economists polled by FactSet. 

Yet there’s a very real downside to lower rates, said Esser of SEG Realty. 

“It’s going to add another level of hardship onto the first-time homebuyer because what’ll happen is more people will jump back in, so you’re going to see more competition, and more competition means prices are going to rise,” she said.

While it can be emotionally draining to strike out on buying your first home, it’s important to keep one’s financial goals in perspective, CBS News business analyst Jill Schlesinger advises.

“There is a psychic benefit that people have from owning a home, and I understand that, but it never makes sense for you to buy a house and not be able to fund your own retirement,” Schlesinger said. “Try not to make this the most important thing, my forever home. These are things that can really be emotional traps.”

There are also some benefits to renting, Schlesinger added. For one, renting may provide more financial flexibility, since it means you don’t have to pay for the upkeep of a home and other costs. And that could help free up some money to invest in your 401(k). 

As for Chauhan, she said she hasn’t given up on finding her dream home. 

“Yes, this is the year,” she said.

A former Memphis police officer testified Tuesday that he punched a “helpless” Tyre Nichols at least five times while two colleagues held his arms and said “hit him,” then lied to his supervisor about their use of force in a beating that proved fatal.

Emmitt Martin III testified at trial that he was at the traffic stop on Jan. 7, 2023, when Nichols was pulled over and yanked from his car. Nichols fled, but Martin has said Tadarrius Bean and Justin Smith gave chase and were punching the 29-year-old man without their handcuffs out when Martin caught up with them.

“They were assaulting him,” Martin said Tuesday.

The fatal beating, caught on police bodycams and street surveillance cameras, has sparked protests and calls for police reform. Officers said they pulled over Nichols for reckless driving, but Memphis’ police chief said there was no evidence to substantiate that claim.

Bean, Smith and Demetrius Haley have pleaded not guilty to charges that they deprived Nichols of his civil rights through excessive force and failure to intervene, and obstructed justice through witness tampering. Their trial began Sept. 9 and is expected to run three to four weeks. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Rogers, during opening statements last week, said the force officers used did not match Nichols’ actions.

Bean, Smith, Demetrius Haley and Martin, along with Desmond Mills Jr., were fired by the police department after Nichols’ death. The officers were later indicted by a federal grand jury. Martin and Mills have taken plea deals and are testifying against their former colleagues.

Martin said he was angry that Nichols had run from the traffic stop, and that the team had not yet made any arrests that night.

“I figured that’s what he should get,” Martin said.

Prosecutor Kathryn Gilbert asked Martin whether officers were allowed to use force because they are angry.

“No ma’am,” he said, adding that he should have intervened.

Martin said he threw his body camera on the ground.

“I didn’t want to show what we were doing,” he said “We were assaulting Mr. Nichols.”

Martin said he kicked Nichols, while Mills hit him with a baton. Then Martin said he punched Nichols at least five times while Bean and Smith held his arms and urged Martin on. Officers were holding his arms while also giving him commands to give them his hands.

“He was helpless,” Martin said of Nichols.

Martin said he did not tell Lt. Dewayne Smith, his supervisor, about their use of force. Martin said he told Smith that Nichols was high, without evidence, and that officers lied about Nichols driving into oncoming traffic and taking a swing at them during the traffic stop.

Martin testified that while he felt pressure on his gun belt at the scene of the traffic stop, he never saw Nichols put his hands on his gun. Yet, Martin said, he told his supervisor that Nichols had his hands on his weapon.

“I exaggerated his actions to justify mine,” Martin said.

He said colleagues understood that, “they weren’t going to tell on me, and I wasn’t going to tell on them.”

Martin said they violated department policy with their use of force and lying about it.

Nichols, who was Black, was pepper sprayed and hit with a stun gun during the traffic stop, but ran away, police video shows. The five officers, who also are Black, caught up with Nichols and beat him about a block from his home, as he called out for his mother.

Video shows the officers milling about and talking as Nichols struggles with his injuries. Nichols died Jan. 10, 2023, three days after the beating.

An autopsy report shows Nichols — the father of a boy who is now 7 — died from blows to the head. The report describes brain injuries, and cuts and bruises on his head and elsewhere on his body.

The five officers also have been charged with second-degree murder in state court, where they pleaded not guilty, although Mills and Martin are expected to change their pleas. 

Federal prosecutors have previously recommended a 40-year sentence for Martin. A date has not been set in state court yet.