The real estate market is warming up, but first-time homebuyers are still feeling a bit chilly.

"The challenge for many of them is student debt," said Cass Chies, broker and owner of ReMax Diamond 1st in Palmerton.Nationally, first-time buyers represented 33 percent of sales in January, which is just above its historic low, according to the National Association of Realtors. In the 35-year history of NAR's survey, the rate has fluctuated between 32 percent and 40 percent. The rate in December was 32 percent, but the overall rate for 2016 was 35 percent."Constrained inventory in many areas and climbing rents, home prices and mortgage rates means it's not getting any easier to be a first-time buyer," said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun.The U.S. Census Bureau data on Housing Vacancies and Homeownership reported that for homebuyers between the age of 18 to 35, there is:• A lack of affordable new and existing houses.• Prices of houses in many areas are rising far above wages.• Saving for a down payment is difficult due to rising rents and student debt.Yun said, "First-timers' ability to enter the market more convincingly over the next year greatly depends on supply improvements at the lower end of the market and if wages can finally awaken from their sluggish pace of growth."The heart is willing, even if the wallet isn't.Of the first-time home buyers who did purchase a home, 64 percent in 2015, up from 53 percent in 2014, said their primary reason for their purchase was a desire to own a home of their own, he said.