For people who want to buy a home in Washington but aren't there yet. What lenders actually look at, which programs exist, what to fix first, and where to get free help. No fee, nothing to sign, and no pressure to use us as your brokerage when you're ready.
Plain arithmetic on the four numbers a lender looks at first. It runs in your browser — nothing is sent anywhere or saved.
This is an estimate to orient you, not a loan decision. Only a licensed lender reviewing your actual documents can tell you what you qualify for.
People fixate on the credit score. It's one of five, and it's rarely the one that sinks a file.
Your total monthly debt payments, including the proposed mortgage, divided by gross monthly income. This is the number that most often decides how much house you can buy — and it's the fastest one to improve, because paying off a car loan changes it immediately.
Not just the score. Lenders look at payment history, how long accounts have been open, how much of your available credit you're using, and recent inquiries. A thin file with no history can be as much of an obstacle as a low score.
Down payment is only part of it. You also need closing costs and, ideally, money left over afterward. Lenders like to see reserves, and you'll want them regardless — the first repair always arrives sooner than expected.
Generally two years of documentable, consistent income. Job changes within the same field are usually fine. Self-employment, commission, gig, and cash income need more documentation and more planning — start that conversation early.
The house has to appraise and, for some loan types, meet condition standards. A great borrower and a bad property still fails. This one matters when you get to offers, but it's worth knowing it exists.
Requirements and limits change, and individual lenders add their own overlays on top. Treat this as orientation, then confirm current specifics with a lender.
The standard path. Some programs allow as little as 3% down for qualified first-time buyers. Mortgage insurance is required below 20% down but can typically be removed later once you have enough equity — which is a meaningful advantage over FHA.
Government-insured, more forgiving on credit and debt ratios, 3.5% down for most borrowers. The trade-off is mortgage insurance that generally stays for the life of the loan on low-down-payment files. Often the right entry point, and frequently refinanced later.
For eligible service members, veterans, and certain surviving spouses. No down payment requirement and no monthly mortgage insurance. If you're eligible, this is almost always your best option — and with JBLM here, a lot of Pierce County buyers are.
Zero down for eligible buyers in designated rural areas with income limits. Parts of eastern Pierce County qualify. Worth checking the eligibility map before you rule it out.
The Washington State Housing Finance Commission runs first-mortgage programs paired with down payment assistance for income-qualified buyers. Most require a homebuyer education class — take it early, it's free or low cost and it's genuinely useful.
Usually a second loan, sometimes deferred, occasionally forgivable. The details matter enormously: when it's repaid, at what rate, and what happens if you sell early. Read the terms, don't just take the money.
If you're roughly a year out, this is the order we'd do things in. Compress it or stretch it to fit your situation.
Pull all three credit reports free at AnnualCreditReport.com — the official site, not a lookalike. Read them for errors and dispute anything wrong directly with the bureau yourself; that's free and you don't need to pay anyone. Then talk to a lender and get a real assessment, not a guess.
List every monthly payment. Target the ones with the highest payment relative to remaining balance — a car loan with eight payments left can be worth clearing entirely, because removing that payment moves your ratio more than the balance suggests.
Required for most assistance programs and useful regardless. HUD-approved counseling agencies in Pierce County offer free or low-cost sessions, and a certified housing counselor will review your whole picture with you at no charge. Find one at hud.gov or by calling 800-569-4287.
Set an automatic transfer the day you get paid, into an account separate from your checking. Work toward down payment plus closing costs plus a reserve cushion. Keep it liquid — lenders need to source and season these funds, and money that appears suddenly raises questions.
This is the quiet phase. No new credit, no big purchases, no job changes if avoidable, no moving money between accounts without a paper trail. Underwriters re-verify late in the process, and a change here can unwind an approved file.
Full pre-approval with documents verified, not a pre-qualification estimate. Then we set your search filters, and you go look at houses knowing exactly what you can do.
Every one of these is common, and every one is preventable. Your file gets re-checked shortly before closing.
None of these pay us anything, and we'd rather you use them than pay someone who charges for the same thing.
AnnualCreditReport.com is the only federally authorized source for free reports from all three bureaus. Checking your own credit does not lower your score. Disputing errors is free and you can do it yourself.
Certified counselors provide free or low-cost budget review, credit guidance, and homebuyer education. Search the directory at hud.gov or call 800-569-4287 for an agency near Tacoma.
The Washington State Housing Finance Commission publishes current program requirements, income limits, and a list of participating lenders. Start at wshfc.org before you assume you don't qualify.
Plain-language explanations of loan estimates, closing disclosures, and your rights as a borrower, plus a complaint process if a lender mistreats you. consumerfinance.gov.
Nothing. There's no fee, no deposit, and no contract. It's education, a conversation, and referrals to free resources.
We run this because a meaningful share of the people who call us can't buy today, and helping them get there is better business than not returning their call. If you work with us when you're ready, we earn a commission on that transaction the normal way. If you don't, you've still got the information.
No. We're a real estate brokerage, not a credit repair organization, and we won't take money to act like one. We'll explain what's on your report and what tends to move the needle, and we'll refer you to a HUD-approved housing counselor who does this professionally at no cost to you.
Disputing genuine errors is something you can and should do yourself, for free, directly with the credit bureaus.
It depends entirely on which of the five factors is holding you back. If it's only the down payment and your income and credit are solid, the answer is a savings math problem — often six to twelve months.
If you're rebuilding credit after a bankruptcy or foreclosure, there are mandatory waiting periods by loan type, and those run in years rather than months. If it's debt-to-income, it can sometimes be a few months. We'd rather give you a real timeline for your situation than an average that describes nobody.
No. There's nothing to sign to participate and no obligation of any kind. When you're ready to shop, Washington requires a written buyer agency agreement before we show you homes — that's a separate decision you make at that point, freely.
Not remotely. It's arithmetic on four numbers you typed in, running in your browser. Nothing is transmitted, stored, or reviewed by anyone.
It's meant to show you roughly which factor is your bottleneck so you know what to work on first. Only a licensed lender reviewing your actual documentation can tell you what you qualify for.
Usually not. Lenders have different programs and different overlays, so a denial from one is not a verdict from all of them. And you're entitled to know why — the lender must give you the specific reasons in writing.
Bring us that letter. Very often it names something concrete and fixable, and once we know what it is we can build a plan around it.
Twenty minutes, free, no obligation, and an honest answer — including a realistic timeline if the answer is “not yet.”
Pick whichever is closest — no forms, no sales calls.
I want to buy a home I want to sell a home I'm looking at investment property I'm not sure I'm ready yet I'm a licensed broker looking at firms Just call us — 253-528-6301