Ready Plan.

Set a savings target from the loan you will use, save toward it at a steady pace, talk to a loan officer early, get pre-approved about two weeks before you start touring, and allow about six weeks to find the home and 30 to 45 days from an accepted offer to closing. This page works out the dates back from the month you want to move.

It depends on the loan and the lender. FHA allows 3.5% down from a 580 score and needs 10% down from 500 to 579 (HUD Handbook 4000.1); conventional and VA lenders set their own minimums, and a higher score usually means a lower rate. This page only asks for a band you describe yourself: it never asks your score or checks your credit. A loan officer can.

Utah Housing Corporation offers loans and down payment assistance for qualifying Utah buyers, with income and price limits, through participating lenders. What is open changes, so check utahhousingcorp.org and ask a lender who works with it. Nothing on this page promises you qualify.

Before you start touring, so you shop in your real budget and can offer the day you find the home. The plan puts it 14 days before your first tour. The lender checks your income, assets and credit; Parry Dean Ward never asks those here.

Ask your landlord about a month-to-month extension, or move your plan up so you close near the lease end. If you would close well before it ends, ask what ending the lease early costs. The plan flags either case.

For eligible veterans, service members and surviving spouses, VA loans can need no down payment and have no monthly mortgage insurance. Most borrowers pay a one-time funding fee, usually added to the loan, and closing costs still apply. VA confirms eligibility with a Certificate of Eligibility.