The first-time buyer guide
A plain-English walk through the eight stages of buying your first home, with the numbers you need at each one.
The guide covers getting pre-qualified and then pre-approved, working out your real budget, finding an agent, searching, making an offer, inspection and appraisal, financing, and closing day. It ends with short answers to the questions first-time buyers ask most. No sign-up, and you can skip to any stage.
It links out to the calculators as you go, so you can check affordability, monthly payment, and closing costs at the point in the process where each one matters.
There is one optional form at the end, to start a pre-qualification. Filling it in sends your name and email to the brokerage behind the site so a local agent can follow up. Reading the guide on its own contacts nobody.
What is the single most useful first step?
Getting pre-approved before you shop seriously, not after. Sellers do not take an offer seriously without a pre-approval letter, and it tells you what you can actually spend.
Need more help? Contact support.