Hi ysette9, I'm not exactly sure where in the Bay Area you are, but I'm over in the East Bay. I have also been in the Bay Area Real Estate Market for over 20 years. Not as an agent, as a homeowner. I bought my first SFH all by myself, thirty years ago, in SoCal. IIRc, I've purchased at least eight houses so far and look forward to my next deal.
The market is at a nice high, so I would move your DP money into something totally safe. Just a money market or plain vanilla savings account. Do not put it into bonds. They can be more volatile than people realize. Then wait.
I would then look long and hard at my current living situation. If it's tenable, I'd stay put. Start going to open houses to figure out what and where you want to buy. But don't buy yet. Look, look, look. Tell anyone who asks that you have an agent, but you're out looking on your own this weekend. That way they're less likely to pester you. If you really click with someone, you can circle back later to interview them.
When the market crashed last time and people were terribly underwater, it was easy to say they should have seen it coming or "What the hell were they thinking spending that kind of money?" Truth is, it's not so easy to predict the future. Having said that, we pay a lot of attention to the market. We're in the process of choosing our next flip project. We actually spent Valentine's Day at a Foreclosure Auction. (Mustachian romance.) The prices people are paying these days is fucking insane!
Let me be clear, I am not comparing Bay Area prices to anything but Bay Area prices. Don't listen to anyone from anywhere else telling you how much they can get for their dollar in their flyover state. That's not what I'm talking about. What I'm saying is the more I see here, the less I understand how the market can keep going at this pace.
I would be really hesitant to jump into the market right now. I would secure my down payment, then I'd start looking everywhere to figure out your likes & dislikes and what kind of work you're willing to do. Don't be in a hurry to buy.
Here is my primary point: You have to be so in love with what you buy that you will happily continue to make payments on it, even if you should find yourself underwater. That's not easy to do in any market, especially for first-timers. Since you're here, I know I don't have to warn you not to buy more house than you can afford.
One more thing: You don't need to shop lenders yet. What you need is to get pre-qualified and pre-approved by a lender. You'll need that when you make an offer, but you only need ONE. If you find a house and open escrow, then you shop like hell for the best mortgage.
And mountainfamily is right about the earnest money. When you do open escrow, the lender is going to want a shitload of documentation right away. Prepare as much as you can in advance (copies of tax returns, pay stubs, account statements) to expedite the process.
Above all, trust your gut.
Feel free to PM me if you have questions.