We got lucky, tried buying several houses during a lifestyle visit, all were under contract, left and continued to try by email, same results, finally found a lot and built. By ACCIDENT, we avoided the kissing lanai, ended up with a lot large enough to have a 800 square foot birdcage, no pool, but that was fine there are 3 pools within .25 miles of our house. I am sure if we had gotten one of the first houses, we would have ended up moving out.
As noted above, renting is a really good idea, then you get the lay of the land (over 70 square MILES now) and a feel for the various neighborhoods.
Good luck with your quest.
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Pennsylvania, for 60+ years, most recently, Allentown, now TV.
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