The advice here is good so far.
Few things.
For deposit, you can definitely go down to 3%. There are conventional loans and FHA loans that allow that. For all deposits under 20%, You will have to pay private mortgage insurance which will be added to your monthly payments and you will also have an escrow account which will hold your taxes and home insurance too.
For now, you need to create a budget so you know where your money is going. In your budget set aside money for emergencies and also money for the new home. Two sites I have used their tools are Iwasbrokeandnowimnot and EveryDollar. Simple things like if you get a bonus rather than spending it, put aside would help. Also depending on how you get paid, if biweekly for example, you get two extra paycheck a year, you can choose to put that aside. With a budget, every thing you do not spend, allocate to your home fund.
Clearing your debt is important so follow the advice from one of the other posters here. If you want to incur any new debt, like buying a car, do it now. The closer you are to the end of the five year the less new debt you should incur.
When it comes to mortgages, one thing I’ve learnt is not to make hard inquiries when shopping around, it can seriously affect your score. You are only allowed soft inquiries.
Sites like credit karma and credit sesame can help you monitor you credit score. Your credit card could also have credit monitoring service, use them.
Apart from down payment, you are also saving for closing costs which can be up to 6% of your loan amount. While you may be able to finance some of these and have a seller pay for some of it, saving for this can provide you with breathing room.
Good luck
