agreed -- hook up with a nice realtor who knows the town and suggest a good lender, visit the lender and see what you can be approved for, and tell him/her your plan about the car.
also watch HOA fees on condos. i moved into a 9 unit townhome last year and love it, fees are $125 a month. but some highrises and other places i looked at (downtown denver) were over $300 a month!!! now that's money down the drain, and you wouldn't use a pool that much. i think the smaller the condo group the better. our neighbors help with tree trimming, i shovel snow, and nobody is a "busybody" about rules and book stuff (we all respect each other).
you may need to rent a truck once in a while to bring home some stuff from home depot, but overall i think it's a great investment
good luck - and get a good home inspector too, and get some "checklists" of preventative maint. type stuff. i poke around once a week or month for leaky faucets, furnace filters, mice, etc. anything i can fix early for cheap cost rather than wait and have more damage...