A couple of things, especially since car buying in the pandemic has its own set of wonky rules. At this point, I wouldn't buy used since used car prices are crazy right now. Buying new might still get you incentives, but new car production is also effected by the pandemic.
1) Think of what your overall car budget is. Okay, you want to put down $9000, that's a lot to put down on a Civic or Accord depending on the trim. How much do you want to spend overall? $20000, $25000, $30000, $35000, etc.
2) Think of what features you want, and the trim level. Do you want Android Auto/Apple Carplay, do you want heated/cooled seats, do you want AC, power windows, etc.
3) IMO, if you can, try to go for a larger sedan, if you're on the taller size, a larger car means more space, and the hit on the gas mileage isn't too bad.
4) Check what your credit score is, and know what it is before hand. Also, check with your local bank or credit union and see what they're offering on financing. When you do financing, (and you're going to have to do it unless you're paying for the car outright). Depending on your credit score, they might offer a percentage above what it should be. Say your credit score is 750 and that should qualify you for the best rate the auto company financing is (And pretty much all auto companies have their own bank/financing company at this point, one would argue that they're banks masquerading as auto companies at this point). They do this because they can make profit off of interest off of you. That's fine, but you need to know what you should pay on interest, and if their offer of financing is terrible and try to screw you over, just say you'll go with your credit union instead.
5) Due to the pandemic, companies are much more willing to negotiate over email. Try to do everything you need, including negotiate terms before you even set foot into the dealership. You can use a car matching service like Truecar.com to compare various prices online with nearby dealerships. If you don't want to negotiate at all, try costco car buying service, where it won't be the lowest price you can get if you're a good negotiator, but that is the price (outside of fees and taxes) that it should be, so you know what the price you are paying. And if the dealership won't honor it, you can complain to Costco.
If you want to stick with Honda, I'd go for an Accord vs. a Civic just because of the size, unless you really want the Civic Hatch due to storage space because of the hatch. Other sedans I would consider is the Camry for reliability, especially the hybrids, the Corolla (current versions, both the sedans and Hatches are way better than previous versions), including the hybrids, the new K5 from Kia, the Optima from Kia, and the Elantra from Hyundai.
BTW, I like Kia and Hyundai, but their dealerships have bad reputation in the U.S. for a reason. But it all depends on the individual dealership. I bought a Kia Niro (their dedicated hybrid) in late 2017. And the experience was okay, but I was annoyed at how long it took and I think it was intentional to make me tired enough to agree to shit.
