A year ago, Jared Bowen was saving for a home but didn’t believe he’d actually be able to buy one.

Earlier this month, he closed on a single-family home in Saratoga Springs – and he credits NestSTEPS for helping make it possible.

The Utah-based company works with employers and individuals to offer financial training and access to experts, with the goal of helping people become first-time homeowners or move into their next home.

It’s a short-term solution to the affordability crisis in Utah’s market while the state works to increase supply, said Larry Salazar, the co-founder and president of NestSTEPS.

And it works because it changes people’s behaviors, he said, especially around increased discretionary spending.

“We’re spending on wants — that financial habit has to change in order to accelerate savings,” he said.

It makes sense for companies to offer programs like NestSTEPS, he said, just like they would a retirement account or health insurance. It builds loyalty and cuts turnover costs, he said.

“I think homeownership as a benefit will be the next 401(k),” Salazar said. “I think that’s what people want.”

Greatly increased savings

Bowen had saved a “good portion” of what he needed to buy a home but still thought it was too expensive.

It turned out he wasn’t saving enough.

“I just was being a guy, spending my money more than I probably should have,” he said.

Using NestSTEPS during the program’s testing phase helped him build a budget and map out what it would take to buy a home, making it an achievable goal.

He said he doubled or tripled the amount he was saving while living with his parents after going through the training sessions.

A new kind of employee benefit

Now employers can offer the same opportunity to workers. NestSTEPS still works with individuals, too.

Employees can establish a personalized cash-flow plan and automate savings from their paycheck through the platform. And they can receive up to $2,000 to go toward closing costs or a down payment once they complete the program, depending on whether their employer contributes and they use a preferred lender.

Eleven Utah companies have signed on to offer NestSTEPS to employees, according to a company representative who said the companies hadn’t agreed to be named.

And two Utah-based benefit companies — a professional employer organization, or outsourced human resources firm, called ROW Partners and employee benefits broker Miller & Associates — have announced partnerships with NestSTEPS.

Housing affordability is an increasing concern for employers as it harms their ability to attract and retain workers, and extensive research shows it also affects labor productivity and economic stability.

While Utah officials are working to address the state’s housing crisis by encouraging more construction, that’s a long-term solution, Salazar said. He sees a more immediate problem because thousands of listings priced at less than $500,000 — well below the typical home price — still aren’t selling.

“We’re just not seeing movement even in homes that are lower than the average price,” he said.

The biggest factor there, he said, is people’s spending habits.

That’s where NestSTEPS comes in. The program includes six educational workshops covering topics like market conditions, savings and long-term financial planning. It also offers one-on-one support from licensed professionals.

For Bowen, the education was useful because it made him believe homeownership was achievable and expanded his idea of what buying a home could look like.

He initially was “kind of picky” but started considering more options, he said, like buying a property with a secondary unit where he could live while renting the rest or purchasing a smaller home, after working with the program’s advisers.

State backed a similar program

The state has recognized programs like NestSTEPS as a valuable tool.

Legislators set aside $375,000 during the most recent session to help enroll hundreds of prospective homebuyers in Mortgage 850, a six-month program designed to boost credit scores and help borrowers qualify for lower interest rates.

Preston Cochrane with the Family Financial Education Foundation said the program can improve purchasing power by up to 20%.

Steve Waldrip, who advises Gov. Spencer Cox on housing strategy, said he’s seen a lot of programs aimed at helping Utahns buy homes and described Mortgage 850 as “impactful.”

The NestSTEPS program has been a benefit for Bowen, who credits it for helping him see homeownership was possible and craft a path to get there.

“It’s a plan to help you get to where you want to be,” he said. “It’s up to you whether you want to follow through with it.”