[maddog55]

20% down is typical... All this article is saying is what you’d need down to get to a reasonable payment.

Mortgage rates suck but that what folks get when they vote for the azzholes in office. They bitch then vote them in again.

[dragnet2]

20% down is typical.

Not when the price of a cookie cutter, 1200 square foot, 65 year old home is going for $850,000+.

Snort!

[SamAdams76]

20% down is the minimum needed to avoid PMI (private mortgage insurance) which can add up to thousands of dollars a year and is a total ripoff for the buyer.

I would not advise anybody buying a home without having at least 20% to put down. This also helps to prevent you from being upside down on your mortgage should house prices go down.

Another rule of thumb, do not take out an equity loan unless you have at least 50% equity on your home.

[Alberta's Child]

There are two numbers that come into play when figuring out an appropriate down payment for the home you want to buy. It will be the higher of these two numbers:

1. The mortgage lender's requirement (usually 20% of the purchase price).

2. The down payment you need to get the mortgage down to a balance that fits your capacity to make monthly payments.

It sounds like it's #2 that's driving up the minimum down payment for many of these homes.