Do you have 20% saved (conventional loan down payment) or 3.5% (FHA down payment) plus around $8K for closing costs ? Also keep in mind, termite and home inspection is around $500 - depending on area where you live.  I would first check your credit scores and get a pre-approval from bank/lender in order to know how much you can afford and what loan/interest rate you qualify for. After that, you can contact a realtor, the pre approval letter is good to submit with offer. Make sure you don't have drastic changes on credit or change jobs in middle of process, it can delay the closing because you have to submit documents to underwriter, they will verify that you've never had a late rent payment, verify employer, bank statements, etc.

We started looking in July, put in a few offers, offer got accepted Sept 5th and we closed on Oct 15th and moved in that evening. Keep in mind that it can get expensive, we weren't prepared for the extra expenses - $25 mailbox key, $40 to start Gas company account, since we didn't have a house before, we've had to buy lawnmower, water hose, window blinds - they were $130/each at Home Depot and we have a lot of windows, fridge, washer/dryer, etc.

Mine took from November 2011 - May 2012 

 November - Pre-approval on loan, getting everything lined up credit wise

Jan - started looking for houses

March - found the house and made offer

May - closed on the house

 

Good luck! 

It can definitely be done in under 8 months but I'd start doing some basic research now and get your financials figured out.  Houses are so much more than a down payment as others have pointed out, there are closing costs, utility switch-on fees, all the small things you need to maintain a house (tools, ladder, lawn mower, W/D, etc).  Also my sister-in-law did the same exact thing, baby/house/wedding all pretty much at the same time and it stressed her out and she was always exhausted.  In fact she ended up going into labor a few weeks early and she gave birth a day or two before they closed.  So beyond having to bring her first child home, they were also in the process of moving and setting up house.  It just did not seem like fun and I'm sure something she wouldn't recommend to others.  Ideally I would think if you have all your money ducks in a row, I'd get house hunting now and try to close way in advance of your due date.  House hunting and closing can be very stressful and not something you want to add to the stress of being pregnant 

It really varies.. from the time we first saw our house, to putting in a offer and closing took us 3 weeks...but we were working with sellers who were motivated to sell (needed the house to sell to finance the house they had already put an offer on). If you find a short sale it could be a lot longer, if you don't find a house you love right away it could be a lot longer...etc.

I wouldn't buy if you have never lived with this guy though, might seem like a good plan now, but it will cause major headaches if it doesnt work out perfectly....rent together for a year and then see if you still plan on being together forever....it takes a lot of getting used to living with a person and imo the risk is too high to spend that kind of money together without a ring on the finger or some other promise commitment and knowing you CAN live together, its a lot easier to overlook peoples faults when you don't live under the same roof...(don't get married just because you get KU either).

It took us two years.  I know people who only looked for a couple months and then closed in 30 days.  That wasn't the case for us, but its possible, especially if you have all your ducks in a row...downpayment, credit, things like that.

We only took two months from start to finish.  We began looking in early January 2010 and closed on March 8, 2010.  Our offer was put in on February 7, I believe, so it was about 30 days for closing.  In the time we looked at houses, we probably saw about 30 houses within a month, so it really just depends on your schedule and what you find.  Don't even waste your time with shortsales!   

 

For you guys, it sounds like the biggest thing would be to get your financial ducks in a row.  Throwing away rent is sometimes better than being married to a house with a slew of problems.  If you don't have a ton saved up (or in your case, saved up for other purposes) maybe you could consider looking at renting other apartments or houses. 

You need to look at finances and get pre-approved by a mortgage lender - have you looked at home prices in your area?  Do you have enough saved for the down, closing costs, costs to move/furnish home and "emergency" fund in place (in case anything in new home breaks)?

It took us 2 weeks to get pre-approved by three lenders, 4 months looking at homes before we put in an offer, a week to choose a lender, a month to close and then two more weeks before we moved.  So under 8 months, but every situation is different.  

Def. look into it and see if it's doable.  Worst case scenario - rent somewhere for a little while until your baby is a year or two and then buy. 

It took us less than 2 months from start to finish.  We got pre-approved and started looking at houses in mid-May.  We put in an offer after looking for about a month.  We closed on the house mid-July.  We were highly motivated to find a house, though, since we wanted to buy a house before getting married in August; I think our experience was faster-than average.

Barbara83:

My fiance and I just found out I am pregnant. We're not living together right now but were hoping to buy a house before we got married. Since we have a lot of expenses (bills, saving for a house, wedding, and now baby) we rather buy a house instead of throwing money down the toilet by renting. Plus it's hard to save if you're spending a couple thousand a month on an apartment. 

I'd really like to buy a house and get settled before the baby comes (a little less than 8 months from now). Is this possible? How long does the whole process (from looking to moving in) usually take? Thanks! 

Um, you aren't throwing money down the drain. You are paying for a place to live. You get a space to live w/o having to worry about repairs etc. Just because you aren't getting equity or whatever doesn't mean you are throwing money down the toilet.

Also, to a PP who said you should live with your FI/BF/SO before you marry them... plenty of people successfully & happily live with their spouse w/o living with them before marriage. I'm 3 years and counting. My parents are 41 years and counting. Just food for thought. I do agree with the PP about not buying a house with someone you aren't married to/engaged to.

Once you know how much you can afford (we wanted to stay around $1000/mo with escrow (our taxes have gone up and now we're at $1124), we knew we could afford a $140k loan at the rate in 2009. 

Our first home we started looking in June 2005, found a house in September, closed at the end of October 2005.  

Our current home we went house shopping at the very end of June 2009, found our house on June 30, closed July 15 (I was pregnant with our twins, our old house was TINY and wouldn't fit our family without major reconstruction).  We had to do everything quickly and I was on the phone with the loan officer every.single.day since it was moving so fast and he constantly needed more paperwork.  

There are some that look for the perfect house for a year or more.  Just depends on what you want, and what your budget is.  The higher quality house and lower the budget is going to take a lot longer than if you have the funds to pay close to full price (not get a steal) on a decent home.