I agree that the most important thing is a home inspection. I'm not sure who pays for this or if you split the cost with the seller. The seller is the one who pays the realtor fees as a % of the sale of the house. Just because you qualify to borrow a certain amount of money doesn't really mean you can really afford the payments. You don't want to get a house and then find that everything you make goes into the house payment. Good luck, and take your time. If your area is anything like ours it is a buyers market right now. Houses are taking a long time to sell and prices are coming down a little.