Depends on your work situation. I bought a house when I was 21, and I'm 22 now. I don't have a full-time flying job currently, but I work within aviation making over $25K a year. My house payment is only $590/month for a 1300 sq/ft home. That's the same price as a 1 bedroom apartment around here, and I have a long term roommate so I pay close to nil for the house.

Granted, if I ever get a job with a regional I will have to commute. Unless, I can rent the house out. And that's a big if. So long as I retain a roommate, I can afford to live decently while making first year regional pay. Currently, I can pay the all the bills if I was living alone which is another big factor to consider.

If you have stability at your job, it really is a great time to buy with home prices and interest rates so low. Also, whatever you commuting or in base situation is, plan for the worse and expect to commute and be stuck with the home.

From my experience in the Phoenix area, there are very few homes out there that will be granted an FHA loan approval. Most of them are missing stoves, have exposed wires, or a plethora of other things that will not qualify. And, most of the inventory is going to be a short sale which is highly volatile. I bought a foreclosure through a mortgage broker and real estate agent that helped my manager buy his last two homes. Knowing good people that are referenced to you will likely make the entire process much smoother. It was in my case at least.