'We wanted to move toward starting a family': A new generation of young home buyers is tiptoeing into the market

LOS ANGELES - Newly married and in their mid-20s, Josh and Kayleigh Hyink were ready for the next step in their "master plan."

So the couple ditched their $1,644 one-bedroom apartment in Orange County and this spring purchased a new $430,000 house in the farther-out Riverside County city of Murrieta, becoming homeowners for the first time.

Even though the move meant that Josh's commute to his job ballooned to 75 miles, the couple said it was worth it to get a large house - something they couldn't afford closer in. The median home price in Riverside County was $365,000 in July, compared with $690,000 in Orange County, according to CoreLogic.

"We wanted to get out of renting," Josh said. "We wanted to move toward starting a family."

The rate of first-time home buyers remains low historically, but eight years into the economic recovery, it is finally picking up, as young Americans such as the