Do you think I should wait until I get 20% equity since I am now familiar with this town?

I asked my biz partner what he uses and will get back to you.

Make sure you take advantage of the various resources (books / team builders / calculators) while you learn and get ready for your first purchase! 

Plus we get a lot of people moving here from out of market and when coming from Chicago, New York, or Los Angeles, it looks like everything is on sale here comparatively speaking. 

Do your research to find places where you can get a good return on your investment.Legacy Planning: If passing on your investment to your kids is important, consider how you can structure your investments to make that process easier, whether through trusts, wills, or other estate planning tools.With the right strategy, you can absolutely build a successful real estate portfolio at this stage of your life.

Maybe you can get the bank to work with you, but maybe you can't. 

One of the realtors was skeptical that I can get into this market for $200k, and, I agree, it's a bit of a stretch, but with the pay cut I'll be taking going down to Texas, that's about as much of a mortgage as we can afford on one income.

The better question is do you really need to get a pet deposit based on this? 

I've recently been getting ceiling paints that go on pink and dry white to make it easier to see what spots were missed.

The only bank I have talked to is Western State Bank, but looking for two more quotes.I know what questions to ask, approximately how much I have in equity, and more than ready to invest more.