What is the very first step to buying a home?

Getting pre-approved with a lender comes before anything else in buying a home, since it sets a realistic budget and confirms what a buyer can actually finance before falling in love with a property outside that range. From pre-approval, meeting a buyer's agent to discuss priorities and sign a representation agreement sets up the actual search. Joel Boss starts every new buyer relationship at that same first step, regardless of which town they are considering.