Prize Pigs Buy Teen a House

Three piggies went to market, and one piggy's owner bought a home. Not bad for an 18-year-old! Indeed, the homespun tale of Lindsay Binegar provides a good lesson for all would-be home buyers.

First of all, it required a lot more than just three pigs to save up $40,000. Yet that's how much cash Lindsay Binegar of Greenfield, Ohio managed to save from showing and selling pigs at 4-H competitions and county fairs. Starting at age 4, she simply saved, saved, and saved.

Amazingly, Lindsay used all her accumulated funds to purchase an investment property: a four-bedroom, two-bath, two-car-garage home -- in cash.

Did you just squeal like a pig? You're not alone. Since news of this broke Monday people have been "tossing the pigskin," so to speak, in a series of armchair-quarterback sessions about Miss Binegar's purchase.

So before you add your own thoughts, here's how Lindsay did it and what you can learn from it: