Is Buying a Home the Ticket to Financial Freedom?

But that sacrifice will make you rich, Bach said, especially if you buy more than one home and rent the others.

Mark Ruggiero is practically a walking advertisement for Bach's advice. Even though he makes less than $50,000 in New York City — one of the country's most expensive markets — he scrounged up a down payment to buy a studio apartment two years ago. When it went up in value, he was able to take out another loan, for another studio. Finally, with a roommate he bought a one-bedroom apartment that's almost triple the size of his first place.

This was the key for Ruggiero — instead of selling his first two places, he rented them out — and the rent covers almost all three of his mortgages.

So, to people who feel there is no way they could possibly afford to buy their own home, Ruggiero says, yes you can.

"I honestly believe that if I did it two years ago, that anybody can do it," he said.

There's Risk, but It's Worth It in the Long Run

But should everybody do it? Ruggiero had a hot market on his side, but with the market cooling, foreclosures increasing and interest rates rising, some critics say returns on home buying are less of a sure thing.

Bach acknowledges that the market has cycles and that real estate is not a risk-free transaction. "It's not enough to be able to afford your home, you have to be able to afford your mortgage. Just because the bank will loan you $200,000 doesn't mean that you should borrow $200,000. In fact, I recommend that people borrow 10 [percent] to 20 percent less than the bank has told them they can borrow," he said.

"Real estate is not a risk-free transaction. A lot of it comes down to time. The more time you have, the better chance you have to ride out a bad real estate market," he said.

Given that real estate values have been going up for 40 years, however, Bach says the biggest risk is never buying at all.