You'll need to get a mortgage approval before you talk to the realtor. Your realtor may be able to help with that if you aren't sure how to proceed, but you can probably just go to your bank and ask them to go through the process with you and see what they think you can afford. They'll request a number of financial documents, your credit report, and other documentation, and they will give you a number which is the highest loan they will write you. You don't have to go with them when you do close on the house, right now you just need the approval to show potential realtors and sellers that you'll be able to afford the house you choose. You should probably aim lower than the max they gave you, but as long as you have a handle on the payments and understand the other charges and believe you can make them monthly, then go for it. You'll need to come up with a down payment, some amount of money you'll pay out of pocket towards the total coat of the house. Usually you'll want to try to pay at least 5% of the house, but more is better. If you pay less than 20% you'll probably have to pay for extra insurance in your monthly payments to the bank as part of the mortgage.
Realtors make money only when there's a sale. They want to spend as little time as possible making the sale. They also get a slight bonus if they sell a home that's within their affiliation if they are affiliated with a realtor company.
It's not that they're bad, but they have slightly different goals than you, so be aware of that and make sure you understand what they are telling you to do before you do it. You might be able to find a Buyer's realtor, which is a realtor that never sells homes and, in theory, is working more toward your goals than a generic realtor, but they, again, only get paid when you buy a home.
Realtors like to work with realtors. They will try to dissuade you from attempting to buy a home which is being sold by the owner, or uses a non traditional contract, such as a land contract. If you see something you like, feel free to walk all over your realtor, or get a new realtor, in order to get what you want. Don't sign anything that you don't fully understand or haven't read yourself. Some of the more shady realtors will attempt to get you to sign a contract with them prior to showing you even one house with clauses that prevent you from easily switching realtors. It's a cutthroat business, so just make sure you're on your feet and that you aren't playing a passive role in the whole process.
Typically you should look at many houses, even if the first one looks perfect. If you show even the slightest interest in a home you will be pushed to purchase it, unless they think you have more money and they can push you to a more expensive home. They will often say, "well, if you are interested you should put an offer in ASAP, because you never know who else is looking at it." Of course if you waited another week to start looking you may have missed it too, and the reality is that you already missed all the houses that were sold this yar until now anyway, and more houses will come on the market in the next few months you might also miss. Don't buy into the idea that there's one perfect house for you, and that if you don't jump when you see it that you'll forever regret it.
Once you've decided to put an offer on a house, the process has only begun. There are a variety of reasons an offer might fall through so don't get too excited. You'll need to provide a check as a show of good faith with the offer. The offer essentially says, "I will purchase this house if nothing shows up wrong during the inspection." If you bow out after that point without a good reason, they cash the check. It shows you are serious about buying the house. Of course the offer has many clauses which give you reason to bow out and retain the check if something is wrong that they didn't tell you about.
They don't have to accept the offer. They might give you a counter offer. Very rarely will you ever offer what they are asking, the first offer is the start of negotiation, so you typically offer what you are willing to pay, and they either accept it, offer a counter offer, or reject it.
If the negotiation succeeds and a price is agreed on, you at typically given a month to complete inspections of various sorts and get the closing paperwork in order. A home inspection is very, very important. You might want to choose an inspector rather than go with the one your realtor suggests. This and other suggested inspections, such as lead paint, radon, etc, will need to be paid by you at the time of service. Expect to spend a few hundred dollars out of pocket during this time. You should accompany the home inspector and ask questions about anything you see in the house that you don't understand. If something looks broken or worn out, it probably is. Have the realtor make a note of it and consider whether the house is worth what you agreed to after inspecting it. Make sure important things, like the sump pump, are actually tested and working. Just looking isn't enough for some things. Do not buy a house with a cracked or broken foundation. Understand that if the roof is in bad condition it'll cost a lot to replace it, but if the lawn looks terrible it's not going to destroy the house if you leave it terrible. Some things are important and/or expensive, and others aren't. If you are moving to the country without sewer or water service, don't skip a septic system and well inspection. These are often trouble areas that are easy to hide by the seller, and expensive to fix later. Also check what internet services are available.
You and your realtor may find a few things wrong. At that point you usually give the seller a chance to with fix the problems, or lower the price. This is again another time negotiation comes into play.
By this time the title company will know whether the house is free of any legal encumbrances such as taxes, liens, or other unknown mortgages. It shouldn't be a problem, and if it isn't you won't hear anything about it.
Eventually closing day will come. Limber up your hand, you'll need to initial and sign dozens of times. I suggest that you read everything, even if you've read it before. Don't sign something you don't understand and agree to. It'll take time, but this isn't a purchase at Walmart you can simply return if there's a problem.
Now you own a house, and the hard part comes.
Good luck!
