Congratulations!

Start shopping online and make a list of homes to visit. I began 'really' shopping when we had a signed contract and a firm closing date. But I shopped on-line for a year before that.

Jane

I suggest you start after the buyer has done his home inspection and removed that contingency. I think it is usually written in the contract how long he has to do that. (Ours was 7 days.)

But do start looking on line now.

Unless you are moving to a town you lived in before, you should start house shopping about a year from now. That is how long it is going to take you to learn the area and be able to make an informed decision about where to buy. Until then, just rent.

Okay. The contract is being written up now and I'm giving my people two weeks to do an inspection. I'll go then.

I'm so excited for you. I know this has been a frustrating experience. But its almost finished!

Jane

Thank you!

I would start shopping now, online and researching your new area. Look at the surrounding areas of the homes that interest you, such as grocery stores, banks, and restaurants - your daily living. you can also get crime stats online, as well. I would also plan on renting first. I recently sold my home in 3 days! I had not planned on that - I was expecting it to take 3-6 months at least and was unprepared for such a short time for it to sell. I knew what general area I wanted to live in, proximity to grocery, banking, access roads, etc, so I was able to narrow down my search. I used Realtor.com and truvia.com to help me. They also list recent sales, so I could do a comparison as to what the listing prices are and the sales prices were. When I was ready, it just became a matter of finding the right house. I got a short term rental - 3-6 month (i did pay a premium for that - but it was worth paying that rather than ending up with a house i was not sure of) and have just closed on a house that I know I will be happy with. Good Luck with your search.