1. Get pre-approved before house shopping.

2. Decide your negotiables and non-negotiables for a home.

3. Be sure to be represented by an experienced agent and listen to your agent's advice.

1. First stop lender. PERIOD

2. Save enough money for down payment, closing costs and a year's worth of maintenance.

3. Get personal referrals for a buyers agent from people you know who have actually worked with them.

1. Get preapproved for a mortgage.

2. Do not buy anything on credit until you have found your house and CLOSED the purchase or you may loose your loan approval.

3. Do not pay any attention to all the baloney that your relatives and friends tell you about the market, strategy, pricing, low-balling, demanding repairs of everything, negotiations or any thing else that they think their real estate expertise gives them the right to share. (I may not say it, but I sure do think it.)

Sellers are liars! No, the mortgage process is not going to go at all like you thought it would so stop fighting the process. You won't win against the system.

Ask enough questions. In fact, if I think you need an answer to a question that you didn't ask, I will point something out & answer it for you.

It is not going to go the way you expected.

That depends on the market we're in.

But, the 3 principles that never change: location, price & condition.

1. Call Jason E. Gordon to get pre-approved. This determines the purchasing parameters & budget.
2. Drive-by the properties I send you to determine neighborhood appeal vs. house appeal: schools, parking, noise, etc.
3. Create your "need to have" and "nice to have" lists (separately if a couple). This is a process of elimination. You'll write an offer on the house that checks enough boxes, not ALL the boxes.

Tony and Suzanne,

I think you have great answers, and I have nothing to add except that some first time buyers are trust fund babies and able to buy a home without a loan.  Happy Tuesday.  A

proper planning prevents poor performance.

First, although not sequential,
5,6 &7.....still important after all these years.

1. secure the money
2. Adapt
3. compromise

1. speak to a lender

2. keep credit card purchases of big items to a minimum, like zero!

3. pick a knowledgeable agent

Good local lender.

Don't buy/lease a car, get any new credit cards, etc.

The "dream home" with everything you want does not exist for the price you want to pay.  You will need to prioritze what are the must haves and what are the nice to haves.

Watch HGTV and other reality TV shows.

Get an idea of what houses are worth by using Zillow Zestimates.

Look at houses you cannot possibly afford.

Download real estate contracts from the internet, or buy them from Office Depot.

Work with a Realtor for several weeks, then go out on your own one Sunday and buy an Open House from the open house agent.

  * Oops, that's more than three pieces of advice... and did I misunderstand your question?

Only one piece of advice, listen to everything that the agent I referred you to tells you.

1. Get pre-approved

2. Determine the needs, wants, and like-to-have features of the home

3. Be realistic for your market. 

I echo what Candice A. Donofrio said and would add to #1:
Be honest. They're going to find out, so just be honest upfront during the pre-approval process. 

Pre-qualified first, don't change jobs, don't buy any major purchases, You want to stop renting so badly you are driven to save. Stay focused on house ownership. Pull back on other spending areas to make it happen.

Don't think house of your dreams, find something practical, sale-able. Starter house like your car... the place fits your needs, saves time, near school, works for this stage of your life. Pride of ownership of homes around it or castle in a dog neighborhood? Chose wisely young Jedi house buyer (whizzing, buzzing light sabre sound, eerie electrical smell in the air) 

Take your time, look around, study. Wait for it. Read reviews, pick an agent that does not make you feel like you are wasting their time or is impatient to push you into a home that you like but are not in love with. If they don't return calls, are too busy to answer questions thoroughly and seem irritated. Well now Bucky, saddle up another agent to trot through the process that makes you feel your sale is their only sale with undivided attention.

First, get pre approved before even starting to look at homes. Hire me as your buyer agent. Then thrid i go over what to expect and what i need of them. Followed by what they can expect from me. 

Love the home.... like the investment....

He who hesitstes truly lost...buy or don't buy

Never forget all the help you had to get to the buying point...give thanks

I used to help first time home buyers but not recently.  My market is different here on the Monterey Peninsula. But those that I do come across have seen too many TV shows, they think they can find a fixer upper in a great location, do a little cosmetic renovation, and sell it at a big profit. Give me a savvy buyer any time. 

1. If you are a low or no down payment buyer, don't expect to win a bidding war.

2. Find out what an FHA 203k loan is. 

3. Look for homes that have been on the market for at least 30 days.

While it sounds self-serving coming from a Lender, I wholeheartedly believe that getting Pre-Approved for a Mortgage is the logical first step in the homebuying process (assuming they are not paying cash).

From there, work with 1 Realtor whom you trust. Personally, I recommend finding these Professionals via REFERRALS as opposed to randomly selecting a total stranger online.

Lastly, GET YOUR GAME FACE ON...BE PATIENT, BE COACHABLE, and be RESPECTFUL to the process. 

You have some great responses here - I don't have anything to add.  100% agree with getting loan approval - preferably with a lender that will provide underwriting approval. Yes, there are a few that will do that in my area. 

Do your budget, and know exactly what you can afford, and don't go over it.  Know your first home probably won't be your last, you only have to live there two years, and can sell and buy up.   

1. Buckle up Butter Cup - Assuming they are like the majority of 1st time home buyers and looking for something in the bottom half of the market.  It's going to be a challenge and very little of the advice, recommedations and guidance from friends and family (unless they've purchased in the past 2 years) is going to have any relavance to what they are going to have to go through to get into a home in the bottom half of the market today.

2. I'm surprised no one has mentioned it - if they are getting a loan - DO NOT try to plan your move perfectly - for example if you selected a closing date of the 1st of the month in the offer and give notice to their current landlord that that they will be out on the 1st - that is a recipe for big headaches and frustration.  Allow at least 2 weeks if not a month overlop - closing schedule for the 1st - either have your rental go a full month beyond the closing date or at least 2 weeks. This, "I don't want to pay even a day's rent once I've purchased" attitude will most likely have them sleeping on someone's couch or in a hotel for few days - as the entire system is backed up with the great rates, skeleton crews (or working from home) and flooded with new purchase loans and refi's. There's a good chance an extension will be needed.

3. Make sure you have a great agent and listen to them - they are your hired professional. They know the market conditions and know what it's going to take to get into a particular home.

4. Even though it's a challenge - don't take it too serious. It is what it is - have some fun along the way.

1. Avoid
2. Riot
3. Zones

You have some good answers.

1- Buyer within your means.  You don't want to live in paradise and not be able to afford to enjoy it by being house poor.

2- Don't buy a home that is more than you can afford.

3- Don't buy a home less than you can afford that will make you move sooner than is necessary.  Buyer enough bedrooms and a nice enough home to stay in for several years.