I guess everybody would like to own a house and lot of their own, is it not? As I recall, while I am at work, I had always dreamt of building a beautiful house of my own. Now that I had fulfilled my dream, I would like to share with you the basic steps in preparation of building your dream house.

The very first that I did is I consulted an Architect to draw up the house plan. In this way you will be guided on which ones are good and which ones are not. Of course your input counts most, such as how many rooms would you require, how much space would you need for your garage, kitchen, living room and bathrooms. In addition to the size of the floor are of building, you will need also to determine the space for the landscaping and if your wife wants to have a small garden in your backyard. If you do not have the cash money, you are going to need to apply for a housing loan. It is a good idea to prepare a banks list where you can apply on.

Below are some more suggestions that will help you in building your own house:

1.Determining the total number of bedrooms.This is determined by the total number of occupants in your household. If you plan to raise more than one child then you will need to consider to increase the number of rooms. This is very important because you can not just expand your house structure later on. First of all, it is an additional cost and it will do your family a big inconvenience during its construction. So might as well do it right from the start.

2. Determine if you need a small lot or a big one. Aside from size of your house if you are planning have a bigger garden then you need to consider the lot area of the property that you are going to buy.

3. How to determine the right floor area of the living room, bedrooms, and the kitchen. You can estimate it according to the size of your lot and the budget you can afford.

4. How to determine the floor area of your garage - It is dependent on the number of cars you own.

5. Driving time between your house and your work place - Try to find a place that takes less than an hour drive to your work place. You will save money in the long run and most importantly is you save your travel time.

6. It is preferred to be closer to schools, hospitals, shopping malls and parks. The value of this type of property appreciates faster.

7. Neighborhood preference - It is preferable to have property that have a safe and secure neighborhood. You should consider also a cleaner environment or far from pollution.

8. Lastly, prepare a list of reliable lending institution where you can file for a housing loan. You can ask for an assessment to find out what is your maximum lending capacity.

As a summary, yes you will need a lot of planning and preparation financially and mentally in making a decision to buy a house. The most important aspect is whether you will be safe, secured and comfortable with the property you are going to buy. You will have to consider also a clean and healthy environment. Owning your own house is one of the foundations of a happy family. I wish you all to find your dream house very soon.