Renting is the expensive habit.
Your first purchase is mostly questions: How much do we actually need down? What does the payment really include? Is this inspection report scary or normal? We answer them in order, starting with the monthly number — because a first home should build your life, not strain it.
The starter band, by the numbers.
Houses, condos, and townhomes under $450K — recomputed from the live feed at every site refresh.
From "can we even?" to keys.
The first purchase is a crash course. Here's the curriculum, in the order it actually happens:
Payment first, price second
We start from the monthly number you're comfortable with — taxes, insurance, and PMI included — and shop backwards from there. No falling for a list price the payment can't carry.
The programs that actually help
FHA at 3.5% down, VA at zero for those who've served, conventional at 3–5%, and Washington's WSHFC down-payment assistance stacked on top. The right lender pairing routinely cuts the cash-to-close nearly in half.
Earnest money, decoded
The deposit that makes your offer real — usually 1–2% here — and exactly when it's refundable. Knowing which contingency protects it is the difference between shopping bravely and shopping scared.
The inspection crash course
Roof, furnace, electrical panel, and on older homes the sewer scope — the $350 camera run that has saved our buyers five-figure surprises. You'll know what's a walk-away and what's a $500 fix by the second showing.
Closing costs, without the ambush
Plan on roughly 2–3% on top of the down payment — lender fees, title, escrow, prepaid taxes and insurance. We show you the full cash-to-close number before you write the first offer, and negotiate seller credits where the market allows.
After the keys
The first 90 days: where the water shutoff is, which maintenance actually matters, how to protest an assessment, and when refinancing starts making sense. Buying is a moment — owning is the skill.
"Down" is smaller than you think.
On today's median starter home — $340K, live as of October 16, 2026 — here's what each path actually requires up front:
For those who've served — no down payment, no PMI. The strongest buying power in the market.
The classic first-home path — flexible credit, and WSHFC assistance can cover part of even this.
Lower mortgage insurance than FHA with decent credit — often the better math above 680.
Thinner insurance, fatter equity from day one — where gift funds and savings often land families.
Plus roughly 2–3% in closing costs on any path — we put the full cash-to-close in writing before your first offer.
First-home questions, answered.
How much do I actually need for a down payment?
Less than most renters think. On today's median starter home ($340K as of October 16, 2026), an FHA 3.5% down payment is about $11,898, 5% conventional is $16,998, and 10% is $33,995. Washington's WSHFC assistance programs can cover a real share of that for eligible first-time buyers — and VA loans need nothing down at all.
What does a starter home cost right now?
As of October 16, 2026, 400+ homes, condos, and townhomes are active under $450K, with a median asking price of $340K (about $196/sq ft), median 10 days on market — and 126 listed just this week.
What credit score do I need to buy a first home?
Lower than the internet says: FHA programs commonly work from the low 600s, conventional from about 620, and VA has no formal floor. A higher score buys a better rate, not permission — and six months of targeted cleanup often moves a rate tier. We'll point you to lenders who coach that for free.
Is buying really better than renting right now?
It's a math question, not a slogan. Rent buys you flexibility; a mortgage converts the same monthly outlay into equity, a fixed housing cost, and a tax position. The honest comparison is your current rent against the full ownership payment on a real house — we run that side by side, and sometimes the answer genuinely is 'keep renting and save.' You'll get the real one.
First homes, currently for sale.
Starter-band houses, condos, and townhomes — live from the MLS.
Twenty minutes. Zero obligation.
Tell Todd or Sarah where you're starting from — savings, timeline, the neighborhoods you're curious about — and you'll leave with a real plan: the payment range, the programs that fit, and what to do next month even if that's just "keep saving."