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Buying your first home
Nobody is born knowing how to do this.
Most of my clients are buying their first home. This page is the part of our first conversation I find myself repeating, with this week's real numbers in it. Read it, then call me with whatever is still fuzzy. That is what I am here for.
Mortgage rates
Where rates are.
These are the national averages Freddie Mac publishes every Thursday. Your rate will be a little different depending on your credit, your down payment, and the lender. But this is the weather report everybody is reacting to.
30-year fixed
15-year fixed
What I tell people about rates: the payment has to work for you at today's rate, not a rate you are hoping for. If rates fall later you may be able to refinance, but that depends on where rates go, your credit, your equity and the costs of refinancing, so I never plan around it. What you cannot undo is overpaying for the house itself, which is why I spend much more of our time on price than on rate.
The real question
What would that actually cost each month?
Slide the numbers around. I set the defaults to what a first home around here often looks like, and the rate fills in from this week's average. The tax and insurance lines are the ones people forget, so I put them in.
Drag it to the homes you have been looking at. Condos and townhomes start well below houses around here.
Under 20% down you will usually pay mortgage insurance, which I include below.
Starts at this week's 30-year average when it loads. Change it to whatever a lender quotes you. Enter 3 to 12.
Tax, insurance and HOA assumptions
Alameda County runs about 1.1% to 1.3% once local bonds are added.
Varies a lot by home and by fire risk. A quote is worth getting early.
Condos and townhomes usually have them. Most single-family homes here do not.
Estimated monthly payment
$0
30-year fixed conventional loan · principal, interest, taxes, insurance
| Principal and interest | |
|---|---|
| Property tax | |
| Homeowners insurance | |
| Mortgage insurance (under 20% down) | |
| HOA dues | |
| Loan amount |
An estimate to help you think, not a quote and not a loan approval. This models a conventional loan. FHA loans have their own upfront and monthly mortgage insurance, which a lender will price for you. Eligibility for any loan depends on your credit, income, debts and the property, not just the numbers here.
Alameda County, 2026
The loan most people here end up with.
The Bay Area is a high-cost area, which means the regular loan limits are higher here than in most of the country. That matters more than it sounds. It is the line between a normal loan and a jumbo loan, and most first homes in Castro Valley, Hayward, San Leandro and Oakland sit under it.
Conforming loan limit
$1,249,125
The most you can borrow on a standard conventional loan in Alameda County in 2026. Above this is jumbo territory, with stricter rules.
FHA loan limit
$1,249,125
FHA loans allow 3.5% down and are more forgiving on credit. The limit here matches the conventional one.
Lowest conventional down payment
3% / 5%
3% down conventional programs are for loans up to the national baseline limit of $832,750. Larger "high-balance" loans, up to the county limit, need at least 5% down. FHA is 3.5%. You do not need 20% to buy a home.
Loan limits from the Federal Housing Finance Agency and HUD for 2026; they change each January. Being under a limit does not by itself make you eligible for a loan. A lender looks at your credit, income, debts and the property. Ask me for an introduction.
Help that exists
Programs worth asking about.
Funding for these comes and goes, and the rules change, so I am not going to put numbers here that will be wrong by spring. What I will do is tell you which ones to ask a lender about by name.
CalHFA
The state's housing finance agency. First-time buyer loans and down payment assistance for Californians under certain income limits. The income limits in Alameda County are higher than people assume.
calhfa.ca.gov (opens in a new tab) →AC Boost
Alameda County's own down payment assistance, a shared-appreciation loan for first-time buyers who live or work in the county. It opens in funding rounds, so timing matters.
acboost.org (opens in a new tab) →FHA and VA loans
FHA for lower down payments and more flexible credit. VA for veterans and active service members, often with no down payment at all. Both work fine on homes here.
hud.gov (opens in a new tab) →Your lender's own programs
Many banks and credit unions have first-time buyer grants of their own, especially for buyers in certain neighborhoods. This is one reason I want you talking to a good local lender early, before you fall in love with anything.
Ask me who I would call →The route
What happens, in order.
Here is the route. We will hit traffic somewhere, and I will tell you about it when we do.
We talk.
Thirty minutes, no cost, no pressure. You tell me where you are and where you want to end up. I tell you what the road between those two points looks like right now.
You get pre-approved.
I introduce you to a lender I trust. They tell you what you can borrow and what it would cost. This number shapes everything, so we get it first.
We figure out what you actually want.
Not the wish list. The real list. Which three things you will not give up, and which ones you would trade for the right street. This conversation saves us months.
We go look.
I will tell you what I notice in each house, the good and the concerning. You will start to see what I see. It is kind of fun.
We write an offer you are comfortable with.
I show you what the comparable sales say and what the competition looks like. I will tell you what I would do. Then you decide the number, and I write it.
Escrow to keys.
Inspections, appraisal, loan, paperwork, deadlines. This is the project-management part, and it is where I earn my keep. You will know what is happening at every step. Then you get the keys.
Start here
Not sure if you are ready? That is the right time to call.
It is never too early to prepare. I am happy to strategize a year or two out, whether that means working toward a down payment or just understanding how this market behaves. I am not going to hound you. I will be here when you are ready.