Buying a home is an exciting process where you can look around and start to see yourself in all sorts of different properties. Whether you're moving to London from another province or are finally at a point in your life where you can stop renting and invest in your own home, there are more than a thousand homes on the London market to choose from. But, if you want to be a smart buyer there are some steps that you will need to take before heading out to home showings and searching through online MLS listings.

First, you should visit a mortgage broker to get preapproved for your loan. This will show you what sort of home you can expect to afford and can help you get the best possible price when you do start narrowing down your choices to that one perfect property.

The average listing price for a home in London is currently around $245,000. This is much more reasonable than you will find with condos or homes nearer to Toronto and the GTA. The best selling home in the region is a two-storey single family home, with bungalows and ranch style homes next in like. Following those are townhouse condos and apartment-style condos. This is slightly different than you will see with a big city, as land is not at such a high premium as it is in some of Canada's larger cities.

About 550 homes were sold in the last month, marking a fourteen percent decrease in sales from the same time last year. But, the average cost of these properties has gone up by nine percent. This means that it is a relatively even market for both buyers and sellers. The increase in the average price is also encouraging to those that are looking at buying real estate as an investment.

There are many neighborhoods to choose from within the city of London. Homes in the south and the on the northwest side of the city are newer and combine modern condos and single-family homes on quiet suburb-style streets. As you move into the downtown core there are luxury townhouses, historic homes, and apartment-style condos. Anyone is likely to find something to their tastes here. North London surrounding Richmond street is full of student housing and older homes, many of which are owned by University of Western Ontario staff and faculty. There are also little villages inside the larger city like Wortley Village and Byron. You should check out a few choices before deciding which section of the city is right for you.

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