Whether you're looking into buying condominiums or houses for sale, you're going to be faced with a lot of decisions. This is a given any time you enter the real estate market. First time buyers and even experienced buyers can quickly find themselves overwhelmed by all the decisions they need to make if they don't take the time to prepare themselves. To give you an idea of the sorts of decisions you'll have to make, we've compiled this list.

When to Move

You might think this will be an easy call, but when you've got factors like what other houses on the real estate listings are selling for to consider before you put your old property on the market, it can be complicated. Often people wait for spring, as it's house hunting season.

House Features

Once you start looking at the listings and realize just how many different homes for sale there are, you'll need to make a myriad of decisions that will help you narrow your focus. How many bedrooms? One or two car garage? Which neighborhoods? How big of a yard? What should the layout look like? In building gym or laundry service? The list goes on and on.

Budget This is your most important decision because it can determine whether you're going to qualify for a variable mortgage in Canada. Your income and the amount you expect to get from your old house dictate your budget. Ideally you won't reach further than 30% of your income in payments and a 20% down payment or you could be in trouble. Realtor or No Realtor The trend in property transactions has seen buyers and sellers moving away from using realtors, largely due to the recession and its belt tightening effects. If you're buying you don't pay the realtor, so it's in your best interests to use one. If you're a seller, factors like how good you are at negotiations and whether you've got a lot of time to spare will play into your decision. Choosing a Mortgage Once you've chosen a house you have to choose a mortgage, and that's no easy feat considering there are five large banks, each offering a different mortgage rate, and other non-bank options. Plus each of these lenders will also have different mortgage plans. Fixed or variable, long or short, cash back or low interest, you'll have your work cut out for you with this decision.