Essential steps every first-time buyer should know

To prepare to own your first home, you should educate yourself about the home buying process. You can take a class or pick up books from the library. Also, read the real estate sections of your newspaper and consumer magazines.

Here are some things you will want to do:

Ask lots of questions
Learn what questions to ask where and when to ask them. When you are interviewing real estate agents your list of questions will be different than those you ask when shopping for a lender.

Prioritize your criteria
Think about what you want and what you need in a new house and prioritize your list.

Study a variety of mortgage choices
Study the available loan options and decide which is best for you. You may want to interview several lenders to learn about the many mortgage products available.

Get pre-approved before you house shop
Get pre-approved for a loan before you start looking for a home so you know how much you can afford to pay. Lock in your interest rate, once you are actively house hunting (if it’s a good one). This will speed up the closing process.

Work with your agent
After you decide on a home, work with your agent on a purchase offer. You should ask your agent for a market analysis to find out what similar homes are currently selling for in your chosen area. Both you and your agent should style the sales contract to suit your needs.