Hey there! I too live in the Bay Area (North Bay) and have been pre-approved with my husband for our first mortgage with our credit union, Navy Federal Credit Union.
Things we have learned through this process:
1. FHA has a cap on how much you can borrow. This cap is government regulated so it will be the same cap no matter which lender you go through. In Sonoma County the cap is $545,000. Considering most homes up here are north of $545k FHA really limits which areas you can buy in.
2. There are no other low down payment options available, unless you have a credit union which offers low down or no down payment (NFCU offers a zero down mortgage which is what we are using.) I have heard some credit unions in your area are also offering zero down mortgages for those who are in the tech industry.
3. On top of your down payment, you will also need reserves (anywhere from 3 to 6 months worth of mortgage payments in the bank) and closing costs just to get pre-approved. To give you an idea, closing costs on a $600k loan is $16,200. One thing you can do is tell the loan officer that you are getting a gift from family to cover closing costs and then with the help of a good realtor write up offers which get the seller to pay closing costs, which alleviates the need for the family gift. This can put you at a disadvantage however in the competative market up here, especially if you are in a situation where there are multiple offers and someone is willing to pay full price with no contingencies surrounding closing costs.
I hope this helps you! We have been fumbling through this for well over three months now and we are still learning at each turn in the process. We just submitted our second offer on a home Friday and are hoping the deal goes through. Wishing you nothing but luck!!
