i dont think youre going to find any new rwd car for under $20k. even the most basic colorado starts at just over $20k.
my mom has a civic. i hate that thing. you can feel every little thing in the road. just not a comfortable dd imo. id at least spring for a used accord. way more comfy for a DD and will go a looong time before needing anything.
as far as timing chains/belts. i havent looked into it but from what ive seen with toyota/honda is that the V6s have chains and the 4s have belts.
to each his own lol. I drove the civic and the accord back to back. They felt exactly the same to me. Handling, braking, everything ...