5 Tips to Prepare for Purchasing a New Home

If buying a new home is on your wishlist, you’re not alone. More potential buyers are planning ahead, watching the market and getting ready for what could be one of the biggest moves of their lives. While this is a big step, it doesn’t have to be an intimidating one. A little preparation now goes a long way once it’s time for you to choose a home, sign your contract, and get those keys in your hands. 

At Homes by Taber ®, we’ve helped thousands of individuals in Oklahoma navigate the home buying process with confidence. Whether you’re dreaming about a move-in ready home that you can settle into before the snow has finished falling or are hoping to build something brand-new from the ground up, the journey is smoother when you know what to expect and what steps to take first. Read on for five smart, practical tips to help you prepare for purchasing your new home in OKC in 2026. 

1. Start with a Pre-Approval

Getting pre-approved early gives you a clear view of your buying power. Instead of guessing what’s in your budget or browsing homes that may or may not be realistic for you, you’ll know exactly what price range makes sense for your lifestyle and your long-term financial goals. A pre-approval also:

• Helps you understand your monthly payment comfort zone.
• Highlights anything you may want to improve on the financial side.
• Gives you a legitimate advantage once you’re ready to move forward.

Builders love pre-approved buyers because it means you’re serious, and when the home you want shows up on the market, having that pre-approval in hand can speed up the entire process. 

If you’re planning to build your new home in OKC, this step matters even more. You’ll make selections, upgrades and design choices along the way, and knowing what fits your budget from the start gives you the freedom to make confident decisions throughout the build process. 

2. Finalize Your Timeline: Move-In Ready or To-Be-Built

Before you start saving floor plans to your Pinterest board or touring model homes, you should have a real plan in place about your timeline. Are you hoping to move quickly or do you have the flexibility to wait for a home to be built? This one decision shapes almost everything about your home buying journey. 

If you’re building a new home in OKC with our team at Homes by Taber, the construction timeline typically takes around six months, but it always depends on things like permits, weather, design selections, and overall demand. Building a new home in OKC gives you the ability to choose your finishes that personalize your home and enjoy the process of watching it all come together. This timeline also gives you some breathing room to prepare to sell your current home, adjust your apartment lease, or coordinate a move with school schedules or job changes. 

If your lease is ending soon, you’re relocating for work, or you’re just ready to be done searching altogether, you can usually settle into one of our move-in ready homes within about a month. At Homes by Taber our quick move-in homes in OKC are still newly built, filled with our included features, and covered by our in-house Customer Care Department, allowing you to enjoy everything that comes with buying new without dealing with a longer building timeline.

3. Narrow Down Your Location

When you’re still early on in the process, you don’t need to have your exact neighborhood picked out yet, but this is a great time to start identifying the areas that feel like they might be the right fit for your lifestyle. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

• Commute: Decide how far you’re willing to travel every day for work, and start looking at neighborhoods that fit within your limit. 
• Schools: At Homes by Taber, we build in some of the most highly-rated school districts in Oklahoma. Browse through our new home communities in OKC and find which one fits your family best.  
• Daily Conveniences: See which grocery stores, parks, shopping, and dining destinations are nearby. 
• Community Atmosphere: Some neighborhoods feel active and social, some are more laid-back and peaceful. Decide which one you’d most prefer on a daily basis.

At Homes by Taber, we build in a wide range of sought-after Oklahoma communities, each with something different to offer. Spend some time driving around on weekends, exploring areas you haven’t visited and paying attention to what feels right for you. You’ll naturally start narrowing down your perfect location. 

4. Decide Your Must-Have Home Features

It’s so much easier to sort through floor plans and communities when you already know your non-negotiables. At Homes by Taber, all homes are Proudly Overbuilt ® with more included features than any other builder in the area, so your “must-have” list will be easy to check off when you work with our team. Think through things like:

• Do you need a certain number of bedrooms?
• Are you looking for a specific kitchen layout for hosting?
• Do you want a primary suite tucked away from any secondary bedrooms?
• Would you like an upstairs bonus room?

When you work with our team at Homes by Taber, you’re at a huge advantage from the start. Just a small number of our included features are:

• Storm Safe storm shelter built right into the garage floor
• Healthy Home Technology with fresh air ventilation
• Custom-built cabinets with metal extended glide drawers
• Wood-look tile flooring in main living areas
• Fully sodded yards with a full smart home sprinkler system
• LiftMaster Secure View Smart Garage Door Opener

Since so many premium details are included from the start, your wishlist instantly becomes way more attainable, and you won't have to spend your entire budget on upgrades just to get the features you’re excited about. 

5. Choose Your Floor Plans

Once you’ve figured out where you want to be and what you want in your new home in OKC, the next step is narrowing down floor plans. This is where your lifestyle, daily routines and long-term goals come into play. Start by thinking through the essential questions:

• How many bedrooms do you need? Not just today, but for the next several years.
• How many bathrooms would make your life easier? If you’ve ever shared a bathroom with too many people, you probably already know the answer to this one. 
• What kind of layout do you prefer? Think through any preferences you might have of open concept layouts, one-story floor plans, or two-story plans that keep bedrooms private from any shared common spaces.

At Homes by Taber, we have a huge selection of floor plans, so narrowing down your list to include a few of your top favorites will make your search much more manageable. Once you know your finalists, touring model homes or available inventory will help everything fall into place. 

Your Path to a New Home in OKC Starts Here

Taking a few intentional steps now can make all the difference once you’re ready to buy your new home in OKC . Whether you’re dreaming of a move-in ready home or imagining the excitement that comes from building a new home from the ground up, our team at Homes by Taber is here to help make your journey as easy and stress-free as possible.