Here are the key steps that Sunshine Coast homebuyers should follow.

Get your finances in order

What’s your budget? Before you go shopping, assess your financial situation and determine the size of your down payment and how much you can afford to spend each month. Include things like mortgage payments, property taxes, insurance, condo fees, utility fees, and maintenance costs.
Get a mortgage pre-approval. Getting pre-approved by a mortgage lender or bank is a must. A pre-approval tells you how much you can spend and lets you shop with confidence.

Shopping for a home

Find a local Realtor. Hire a licensed agent who knows the local Sunshine Coast housing market inside and out. You’re going work closely with this person so pick someone you like and trust.
Search for properties that fit your criteria and price range. If you feel overwhelmed and don’t know where to start, your Realtor can help you whittle down what is and isn’t important to you.
Visit homes and open houses. Properties that seem like the perfect fit online may not meet expectations when you see them in person. Be honest with your Realtor and let them know what you did and didn’t like about a specific property.

Make an offer. When you find the right property, tell your Realtor to write up an offer to purchase. Your offer will specify things like the price you’re offering, the possession date you want, and conditions that need be met before you’ll move forward with the purchase.
Get the deal accepted. There’ll probably be some negotiation with the seller regarding the price and your other conditions. Your Realtor will handle the stress of the negotiations and report back to you each step along the way.
Do your due diligence. Once your offer is accepted, have the home inspected. A good home inspection will point out potential problems with the property. When the inspection is complete, you’ll decide to either renegotiate the deal or move forward with the purchase. If the inspection highlight a bunch of problems, maybe you’ll decide to withdraw your offer and keep shopping.
Get an appraisal. It’s common for a mortgage lender to request an appraisal to ensure the property is worth what you’re paying for it.
Remove conditions. If the inspection checks out and the appraisal comes in, you’re ready to make the sale unconditional and commit to buying the home.

Send paperwork to lawyers and lenders. You’ll need to supply all your paperwork to your lawyer and your mortgage lender. There’ll be a lot of documents to submit but your Realtor can guide you through the process.
Meeting your completion date. Completion date (sometimes called the closing date) is the specific day when legal ownership of the property is officially transferred from the seller to the buyer. By this date, the purchase contract should be finalized, and all financial and legal transactions should be completed.
Possession date and moving in. The possession date is the day when you take physical possession of the property and can start moving in. It’s not unusual for the the possession date to coincide with the completion date, but it doesn’t have to.