I talked to the mortgage agent at my current bank, and they gave me a pre-approval with a particular interest rate and minimum down payment percentage.
I am happy with the interest rate, but the minimum down payment seems high to me; it means homes that I could otherwise afford with a payment significantly less than what I'm currently paying in rent, are out of my range because I can not afford the down payment..
Is it worth contacting other lending institutions, or are the down payments offered to first time buyers pretty consistent?
My bank didn't say anything about a FHA loan. Is that something I should ask about?