Lending:
When buying a home the very first step you must take is with a lender...unless you are paying all cash!

I have has two recent experiences where the buyers lenders (Big National Lenders) could not do the loans...and these were very qualified folks!  So I asked them to check with our local Bellingham lenders before giving up!  Leena at Neighborhood Mortgage and Rob at The Bank of The Pacific came through for these folks.  With equal rates and costs the National lender was promising...yet couldn't deliver. Another one to check with is Loren over at Whidbey Island Bank. Sit down with a lender or apply online. You must know where you stand financially, how much you can afford, how much down you need, closing costs, and what lending programs are available to you.

There are still several 1st Homeowner programs, which means you haven't owned a home in the last 5 years. 100% Financing programs are still available as well, through the Rural housing program.

In today's lending climate make sure you are working with a lender who can actually get your loan funded.
Ask them how many loans have they closed in the last 2 months!