This is a house buyers market. We all know it, prices are low and people who are selling are desperate. You’re in the market for a new home, but you want to make sure you’re getting a good deal, here are some things you should know.

Know what you want in a house. Consider these the minimum requirements and make a list of them. These are the things you desire and must have. Knowing what you want will help make choosing a house much easier.

Get pre-approved for a mortgage. This is a great way to keep from spending more than you can afford. You know exactly how much you can borrow and therefore how much you can spend on a house. No more worries about whether your financing will fall through.

Call a pest control specialist and home inspector. The home inspector will tell you about any problems with the house itself, but it’s the pest control specialist who can save you from a potential nightmare. Termites, mice, rats, roaches, all extremely hard to get rid of, if you know in advance, you can just walk away. Know before you buy, because then it’s too late.

Plan for the future. Buy a house that no only fits your needs now, but can also fit them in the future. Having enough space is always better than not having enough. Don’t forget to take things like distance from schools and work into account, these things can make a difference for you.

Research. Knowing how much homes in a particular neighborhood go for can help keep you from getting ripped off. No matter how beautiful a home is, its still going to be affected by the homes around it, don’t get tricked into buying the one nice home in that shabby neighborhood.

Never make an offer right away. Always go home and look at all the options, compare the home to all the other homes you’ve seen, make sure it’s the best one. House buying is a slow process, take your time, you’ll eventually find what you’re looking for.

Trust, but verify. If a home is selling for far less than the others in the neighborhood, you have to ask yourself, “what’s wrong with it”. This is where a home inspection or pest control inspection can come in handy, insist on it, especially if the sellers put up an argument. If there’s nothing to hide then it shouldn’t be a problem.

There you have, seven very useful things all house buyers should know. Use them to help in your research and home buying.