You've been looking at homes with your agent and finally found a home that  suits your needs. However, before making an offer and putting down some of your hard earned money you should do a little more research. The following tips will assist you in making the most informed decision possible.

Do A Comparative Market Analysis: Have your agent complete a comparative market analysis on the property.  See what other like or similar  properties in the subdivision have sold for during the past six months. Look for trends such as appreciating prices or declining prices on sold properties. Check to see how long the property has been on the market compared to the sold properties.  By doing this you should get a trend on which way values are headed for the neighborhood and make your offer based on this trend.

Research The Property:  Have your agent find out as much as possible about the condition of the home.  Ask for any existing  Home Inspection, Termite, Roof reports and if the homeowners have any existing repairs that need to be completed prior to the sale.

Check The Insurance History On The Home Or Property: Homes or property with a history of insurance claims tend to be harder to insure and may not be insurable at all. If that is the case the only insurance available may be a high risk pool that may be  two to four times the cost of a regular policy assigned to other homes.

Check The Market History Of The Home:  If the home has been sold and resold numerous times do some digging to see if there are any underlying problems with the home or neighborhood. One way to do this is to speak with other people in the neighborhood. One of the best questions to ask is "If they had to do it over again would they buy another home in this neighborhood?"  This one question normally brings forth the most information on the good and bad points as well as litigation issues that may be pending or in progress. Also if the home has been on the market for a long period of time the sellers may be open to a lower offer  than what you might have had originally in mind.

Visit The Neighborhood At Different Times Of The Day: That way you can find ot what the traffic flow is like, if children hang out in front of the home or if there might be a bus stop near the property. Check the ease of entering  and leaving the neighborhood especially during rush hour. NOTE: The best time to visit the neighborhood is during or right after a heavy rain to see if there is any flooding or standing water.

Check Local Zoning Laws:  Especially if the home backs up to an undeveloped area or woods.  The last thing most homeowners want is a commercial property or apartment complex backing up to their property line. Also find out if the home is in a flood zone. This will affect the cost of putting insurance on the home since you will have to buy an additional flood insurance policy.

Ask The Sellers  Why They Are Selling: Are the sellers transferring, divorcing, downsizing, settling an estate etc.....  Have the sellers bought another home or do they need to sell in order to buy? They may be willing to lower the price even further if the buyer is willing to close quickly.

Have There Been Other Offers On The Home:  Are the buyers who made the offer still interested or did they find and purchase another home? If the buyers are still interested this may affect the selling price of the home.