Targeting 
Tutorial Item 1

You may feel you have a strong idea of what you are looking for ... but consider this:    

There are certain needs that absolutely must be met.    These are priorities.    You may already be sure of some of these.    Commute time may be of importance, or school scores, or size of home, or atmosphere of community.     The relative importance you place on each of these will dictate which areas will offer the balance that suits you.    This is one way we help; we know what the various towns offer.   

It may sound like a silly exercise for husband and wife to jot down their respective priorities on paper and compare them...it is not.   It can be very useful.    

Your priorities may in part refine themselves once you start looking at homes, but a lot of time can be saved if this is well targeted early on.    Remember, keep the list of "MUST HAVES" as short as possible to widen your choices. Only the few crucial ones need to be adhered to, more than that will work against you.

Once you have well defined what your REAL needs are, an effective search can proceed in earnest to find the best possible home from among the towns that will work for you.    Now is the time to remember that you are not merely buying bricks and mortar....very far from it....you are buying a lifestyle.    You are buying a home that will either interfere with your life or support your success.   Buy a home that excites you, one that you want to come home to, one that adds some joy to you life and your family life.    

Marry for love. Be ready to choose a house for more or less the same reason.  The house has to make you smile and help you and your family prosper.