When buying a home, you need to know about your financial "health" if you are financing the property.
Its a good Idea to know your FICO score, here is a link to that:
FICO scores range from 300 to 850 points-the higher the score, the lower the predicted risk to creditors. Because every lender has a different model of what's acceptable, so there is no standard scale. As a general guideline, the median FICO score (half of consumers score above, half score below) is about 725. To qualify for the best loan rates, borrowers generally need scores above 760. Consumers with scores below about 620 will pay significantly higher rates and fees to obtain a loan.
Keep in mind that lenders look at many things when making a credit decision, including your income, how long you have worked at your present job, and the kind of credit you are requesting. Since they factor in additional information and sometimes consider special circumstances, lenders may give you credit even if your score is low, and may refuse you even though your score is high. Still, your credit score counts heavily in your ability to get credit on good terms.
If you need to contact the 3 main credit reporting agencies here is thier information:
Equifax
(800) 685-1111
www.equifax.com
Experian
(888) 397-3742
www.experian.com
Trans Union
(800) 916-8800
www.transunion.com
Then you also need to know how much home can you afford:
Mortgage Professor Calculator:
http://www.mtgprofessor.com/calculatorarticles/integrated_calculators.html
BankRate Calculator:
http://www.bankrate.com/mortgage.aspx
CNN Money Manager Calculators
http://cgi.money.cnn.com/tools/
Home ownership questions answered
http://www.smartmoney.com/spend/realestate/
http://fanniemae.com/portal/index.html
Compare interest Rates:
Here is a link for your VA loans:
http://www.benefits.va.gov/homeloans/
Buying a second home calculator:
http://www.smartmoney.com/calculator/real-estate/how-much-second-home-can-i-afford-1304480241179/
Should I rent or should I buy? Calculator:
Should I pay off my mortgage early?
Absolutely if possible! There are two good ways to do that: You can add one twelfth of that extra annual payment to your mortgage check each month. Or you can simply write a check for one extra payment at the beginning of each year and get it over with. You need to write on the check, "for principal only". Also, make sure that there is no pre payment penalty for your particular loan situation.
But please steer clear of a new bank-sponsored gimmick called an "equity enhancement program" that claims to help you pay your loan off early. The pitch, when you get it, will probably come as a letter from your bank promising to help you reduce the cost of your mortgage with no refinancing. But it will end up costing you money if you sign up.
So though I'm an advocate of paying off mortgages early, I am not an advocate of these offers you're getting in the mail. 
Should I pay points to lower my interest rate?
In general, you can knock off about 1/4 to 1/8 of a percent off your interest rate for each point you pay.. And because these points are interest payments, they're usually tax-deductible. A notable exception to that rule, however, is refinanced mortgages. In this case, only a few states allow you to deduct discount points (North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri and Arkansas) and even then, it's restricted to certain circumstances. You may also be able to deduct a portion of your points if you refinance your mortgage to raise money for home improvements regardless of which state you call home.
Generally speaking, it takes about five to seven years to recoup the cost of paying a point upfront. Here's the math. Let's say you take out a $100,000 30-year fixed mortgage, and you have the option of either paying 6% with no points or 5 3/4% with one point. With the 6% mortgage, your monthly payment will be $600. And with the 5 3/4% loan, it would be $584, a savings of $16 per month. After about 62 months, or a little over five years, you would have recouped the $1,000 point you paid upfront. And then you would start to benefit from the lower monthly payments.
Here is a calculator to help you decide:
Mortgage Protection Insurance?
Job-loss mortgage insurance -- which pays all or part of your mortgage payment if you lose your job -- can bring peace of mind to homeowners and would-be homebuyers alike. Here is an article about this:
http://www.bankrate.com/finance/mortgages/job-loss-mortgage-insurance-often-is-free-1.aspx