Steven Lam - Realtor

Steven Lam - Realtor I help families and investors sell and buy homes!

08/07/2026

You don't need 20% down. You might not even want to use it that way.

Here's a strategy most people never consider. Instead of putting the full 20% down, put 5% down and use the rest to force equity.

Update the home. Add square footage. Convert the garage.

I've run the before and after numbers with clients on this. Value goes up, and PMI drops off years faster than it would have on appreciation alone. One client saved around $300 a month doing exactly that.

Same money. Very different outcome.

I've sold over 100 homes in the Bay Area and I put out videos every couple weeks breaking down the real stuff about buying, selling, and investing here. No fluff.

Comment GUIDE and I'll send you the Bay Area House Hacking Starter Kit. It covers how to actually make an 800K plus home work, including down payment, PMI, and house hacking strategies that offset your monthly cost.

Steven Lam
Keller Williams
DRE #02078128
(510) 847-3541
[email protected]

08/05/2026

I get why people treat 20% down like a rule. Buying in the Bay Area is not a small decision. Average purchase price is 800K plus, and a lot of the time we're talking 900K or over a million. When the stakes feel that big, people default to the most conservative thing they've ever heard.

But every year you wait, you're paying rent that builds someone else's equity. And you're watching prices move in a direction that can make it harder to get in.

To be clear, I'm not telling you to buy a home you can't afford. I don't believe in going mortgage broke. If the numbers don't work for your life and your goals, I'll tell you straight.

But if the numbers do work and the only thing stopping you is the 20% myth, that's worth a real conversation.

Comment GUIDE and I'll send you the Bay Area House Hacking Starter Kit. It breaks down real down payment options and what you actually need to qualify.

Steven Lam
Keller Williams
DRE #02078128
(510) 847-3541
[email protected]

08/03/2026

You don't need 180K down to buy a 900K home in the East Bay.

Solid income. Good credit. 60K saved. Most families in that spot keep renting because they're waiting on 20% down. Meanwhile the goalpost keeps moving.

Run the actual numbers with a lender:

5% down on 900K is about 45K
PMI runs roughly 100 to 150 a month depending on the loan
Higher monthly payment than 20% down, yes
But you're in the market, building equity in an asset you own instead of handing rent to someone else
And you still have reserves left for repairs and life

Does that work for everyone? No. It depends on your income, your other expenses, whether you have kids, what you actually want long term.

But knowing your real picture beats assuming you're not ready.

Comment GUIDE and I'll send you the Bay Area House Hacking Starter Kit. It walks through down payment options, what you actually need to qualify, and how to run your own numbers before you assume you're not ready.

07/31/2026

You do not need 20% down to buy a home.

That number came from PMI, private mortgage insurance. When you put less than 20% down, lenders require it to protect themselves if you default. And somewhere along the way people started treating PMI like it was a catastrophic cost that made buying with less than 20% a terrible idea.

Here is the reality. I have seen PMI as low as $89 a month. I have seen it at $120. I have seen it at $200. For a lot of buyers that is less than a car payment or a gym membership they do not use.

It is not nothing. But it is nowhere near the deal breaker people think it is.

Want to learn more about affording a house in the bay? Comment "GUIDE" and I'll send you my house hacking guide.

Steven Lam
Keller Williams
DRE #02078128
(510) 847-3541
[email protected]

🎉 YOU’RE INVITED — Open House Blitz in Walnut Creek! 🎉Sunday, August 2nd | 1-4pm📍 1239 Claiborne Dr | 1759 Crescent Dr |...
07/30/2026

🎉 YOU’RE INVITED — Open House Blitz in Walnut Creek! 🎉

Sunday, August 2nd | 1-4pm
📍 1239 Claiborne Dr | 1759 Crescent Dr | 823 Savannah Circle | 2622 Breton Place

I’ll be at 2622 Breton Place with great snacks and cold drinks, plus a raffle for a cooler to keep your drinks cold all summer long! ☀️🧊 Every open house has its own raffle with different prizes, so make sure to stop by all four!

Bring the family, follow the balloons, and come say hi!

Steven Lam | Keller Williams East Bay | DRE #02078128

KellerWilliams

07/29/2026

The 20% down rule is keeping a lot of people on the sidelines who don't need to be there.

Here are your real options. Several loan programs let you buy with significantly less than 20% down. Conventional loans can go as low as 3% in some areas. FHA down to 3.5%. There are also first-time buyer programs with their own requirements that sometimes come with assistance.

What you actually qualify for depends on your income, your credit, and the price point you're buying at. That's why the first step is a real conversation with a lender, not a calculator on Redfin or Zillow, and not AI.

To be clear, I'm not saying you should put the minimum down. That's not the point. The point is you have options, and a lot of people don't even know they exist because they've been operating off a number they heard somewhere and never questioned.

If you've been waiting to hit that 20%, at least find out what the actual math looks like for your situation before you keep waiting.

Comment "GUIDE" and I'll send you my house hacking guide.

Steven Lam
Keller Williams
DRE #02078128
(510) 847-3541
[email protected]

07/27/2026

PMI is not permanent. Unless it's an FHA loan, you don't have to pay it forever and accept it as the cost of putting less down.

There's a path to getting it removed, and it comes down to equity.

Here's how it works. As you pay down your mortgage and your home appreciates, your equity grows. Once you hit that 20% threshold, you can request a reappraisal. If the appraisal confirms you're at or above that level, the PMI drops off.

Think about it in a market like the Bay Area, where home values have historically appreciated over time. You might hit that threshold faster than you expect.

Buy with 5% down. Make your payments. The home goes up in value. Get it reappraised, and the PMI is gone.

You don't wait years to save the full 20%. You get into the market, start building equity, and remove the PMI when the numbers make sense.

Comment "GUIDE" and I'll send you my house hacking guide.

Steven Lam
Keller Williams
DRE #02078128
(510) 847-3541
[email protected]

07/24/2026

The appraisal contingency is the one most buyers underestimate.

Here's how it works: once your offer is accepted, the bank sends an appraiser to confirm the home is worth what you're paying. Offer $1M, appraise at $1M, the loan funds with no issues.

But if you waived the appraisal contingency and it comes back at $980K, you're covering that $20K difference out of pocket. On top of your down payment.

So how do you protect yourself if you're going to waive it?

Work with an agent who can actually run comps. Sold in the past six months, plus or minus 250 square feet, plus or minus one bedroom, adjusted for condition. That's how you get a real read on value before you commit.

If the comps don't support your offer price, that's your signal. Maybe this isn't the contingency to waive.

Waiving it makes you competitive. Just make sure you can cover the gap if it doesn't appraise.

Steven Lam | REALTOR® | Keller Williams | DRE # 02078128

07/22/2026

In competitive Bay Area markets, non-contingent offers are the norm. But if you back out after waiving everything, you lose your earnest money deposit. On a $1M home, that's $30,000 gone.

Here's the breakdown:

Inspection contingency: Sellers usually provide disclosures and reports upfront. Do your due diligence before you write the offer. If they don't provide reports, don't waive it.

Appraisal contingency: If you waive it and the home appraises under your offer, you cover the difference out of pocket. Offer $1M, appraise at $980K, you're bringing an extra $20K on top of your down payment. Make sure your agent can run real comps before you take that risk.

Loan contingency: Get fully underwritten. It makes your offer stronger and reduces the risk if you waive.

Contingencies are your protection. You can give them up, but know exactly what you're giving up first.

Don't write a non-contingent offer just because you love the home.

Steven Lam⁠
Keller Williams
DRE #02078128⁠
(510) 847-3541⁠
[email protected]

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