Ultimate Home Buyer's Roadmap (start to close)

King County is an FHFA high-cost area, so the conforming ceiling sits in the low seven figures (over $1.2M for a single-unit in recent years — confirm the current-year number). Above it you're in jumbo territory: tighter DTI, 6–12 months of reserves, and often 10–20% down. A lender who only closes conforming files will stall you here, so ask how many jumbo loans they fund a year.

Give the loan 8–12 weeks of runway. RSU and bonus income take longer to document than a salaried W-2, and jumbo underwriting is stricter. If your date is inside 8 weeks, start the pre-approval before you tour anything.

Much of the walkable and waterfront stock predates 1980, which means clay or concrete side sewers, older roofs, and drainage on slope lots. A sewer scope plus a specialist look add days you won't have if the contract compresses inspection to a single weekend.

Not the house — the money. The two failure points are a lender who isn't fluent in jumbo plus RSU income, and skipping inspection depth on an older home to look competitive. Both are fixable before you write an offer.

Yes. Pre-approval, neighborhood shortlisting, remote tours, and inspection can all happen before you land. The only steps that usually need you in-state (or a power of attorney) are final signing and sometimes the walkthrough.

Your non-negotiables: school-district boundary (LWSD or BSD405), a commute ceiling on I-405/SR-520, and whether you'll accept older-home upkeep for a walkable location. Fixing these keeps charm from talking you out of a good commute.

That's a timing problem, not a house problem — you may need to bridge the down payment or aim the offer just after a vest so you're not selling equity in a down week. Bring both dates to a Real Estate Review and we'll back-plan it.