Visit a local lender and become pre-approved for a mortgage loan. This will accomplish two things. It will tell you what price range you should be looking at when touring homes, and it will make you a stronger buyer when presenting a purchase agreement to a seller.

Define your search criteria, but don't be too restrictive. For example: don't include a fenced yard in your search - you can usually install a fence at a reasonable cost. If you do add the fenced yard, you may severely limit the number of homes that show up in your search.

If you do an on-line search on a site other than one belonging to an individual Realtor or real estate office, the data you find may be out of date by as much as two weeks. However real estate offices and Realtors tend to keep their websites up to date.

Let me do the searching for you. I have the ability to enter your search criteria into my computer and then each day the computer will tell me if a home that meets your criteria has come on the market. I can then email you that listing info for you to review at your convenience and leisure, and you can be assured that you're looking at up to date information.

Once you have an accepted offer on a home, you will need to obtain homeowners insurance. Doing some research ahead of time will enable you to make a quick decision regarding where you want to obtain your insurance. There have been some major changes in the insurance industry in the last few years, so if you have ever filed a claim on your previous homeowners insurance, you may want to check to make sure you will be able to obtain insurance on your new home.

You may want to consider asking the Seller to furnish you a One Year Home Warranty, which would cover the mechanicals of the home for one year from the date of purchase. Most Home Warranties have a least a $100 deductible.

Call the professionals at Vicki Myers Realty and let them assist you in your home buying needs.