Buying a house — or even just thinking about buying a house — can be an exciting and stressful time. First-time home buyers can find the process intimidating, but it doesn’t have to be.

Millions of homes are sold each year, but Mark Prokay of REMAX in Butler said the success of those sales comes with preparation and attention to detail.

Prokay said first-time buyers who haven’t been in the market for a home before often come to him and simply say, “Show me the way.”

[naviga:h3]Financing[/naviga:h3]

Getting prequalified with a loan officer is a great place to start, he said, because it gives the real estate agent a good idea for a price range.

According to the National Association of Realtors, only 10 percent of buyers purchase homes in cash. Everyone else borrows at least some of their purchase price through a mortgage, and that only becomes more obvious when looking at first-time home buyers.

Home buyers can choose among dozens of loan types, but more than 90 percent of buyers will end up using one of four government-backed programs, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Before even starting the process, connect with a financial adviser, said Nancy Kaclik of Century 21 in Adams Township.

She said this is important to ensure buyers are looking in the right price range and at the right types of properties.

“That’s the main thing for first-time home buyers,” she said. “They just need to get acquainted with the whole process.”

These four programs are the conforming home loan, the FHA home loan, the VA home loan and the USDA home loan, and they are the most popular because of their accessibility, low rates and friendly terms.

Those who qualify can finance 100 percent of the purchase, but most people put some of their own money toward the purchase — a figure known as a down payment — and then finance the amount that’s left over.

Thinking of financial capabilities and getting a credit report are key steps in the process, Prokay said, because that will narrow the search options for a house, especially if a location is already in the buyer’s mind.

Kaclik agreed that financial information is the best place to start in the housing market.

“Even just about comparing costs to make sure they’re getting a good purchase that justifies the price,” Kaclik said.

[naviga:h3]The Dream House [/naviga:h3]

After that, other priorities begin to come into play, such as a specific type of flooring, the size of the family room, a fireplace or a garage or other options that cause prices to fluctuate.

“Those are the important things, and the basis of it all,” Prokay said. “You get the priorities established, and then, with that price range, how do you get all those things you want?”

He said when it comes to priorities of the house itself, “school district probably comes first.”

“Location can be influenced by a family member, by friends, by just somebody’s comment — and then the school district is influential, especially for young families,” he said. “If they’re outside the area especially, it would be one of the main questions, ‘Find me a good area.’”

Prokay said other desires for a home vary for each buyer.

“Each person is different,” he said. “You could say a garage is a common want, but not always. Nobody wants to go out and scrape their car off in the winter time, so that’s a pretty convenient thing to have.

“If a house is in great condition, and you don’t feel that you don’t have to do anything, that’s a big influence. Second, a bath is pretty big — you don’t want to be waiting in line.”

[naviga:h3]Home Condition[/naviga:h3]

From there, Prokay said people typically move on to the general condition of the home if it’s not new. Such questions as “How’s the roof? Have the windows been replaced? How soon do we have to do this and how soon do we have to do that?” are typical for new home buyers as are questions about which fixes the current owners can add before the buyers sign for the sale.

“Remodeling buyers have become quite thin,” Prokay said.

Baby Boomers, who Prokay said were most inclined to remodel, “have been pretty fortunate with the economy.”

“There are more young buyers than Baby Boomer buyers at this point,” he said. “Probably more than 50 percent are younger than the Baby Boomers.”

Prokay also said a large part of home buying is waiting to see which kinds of homes come up that fit the buyer’s criteria and then scheduling an appointment to look at homes.

[naviga:h3]Time Frame[/naviga:h3]

Kaclik said that as is the case with most things in home buying, the time frame in which a house can be purchased also varies.

“It could be quick,” she said. “It could take a couple months — it just depends on how many homes they feel they need to look at to know the one is the one.”

Kaclik said after a buyer is set on a home, she typically goes over the contract line-for-line with them to avoid any potential confusion after the purchase.

She said it is important to have buyers “understand the finance process and being comfortable with the contract, and then going over with them what the next steps are in the process with the timing and meeting all their deadlines for inspections, appraisals and mortgage commitment ... just kind of telling them what they need to be concentrating on in each step of the process.”