According to the Red Cross, this month’s flooding in Louisiana is considered as the worst natural disaster since Hurricane Sandy, which hit nearly four years ago. The floods affected over 110,000 families, many of which lost everything and are now forced to look for new homes. This has caused the state’s housing market to reach crazy new levels.

Since two weeks ago, when the British voted to withdraw from the European Union, every segment of the US economy has drastically changed. Stock values have decreased (even internationally), the pound has dropped well below the value of the dollar, and trade with Great Britain has begun to shift. The housing market is no exception to these substantial changes.

According to MGIC Connect, a popular mortgage industry blog, single women now follow married couples as the second largest group of homebuyers in the country. Up two percent from the end of 2015, single women constitute 18 percent of this year’s homebuyers, followed by unmarried couples at 15 percent, single men at 11 percent, and other at two percent.

Buying a home is likely the largest purchase that you will ever make. Before you jump into the process, it is important that you are prepared and ready to pull the trigger to get a house under contract. Below is a quick list of things that a buyer should think about both before and during the home buying process to get you ready to go.

The U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development recently reported that the number of new homes to break ground in March fell 9 percent from February’s figure. Construction numbers typically fluctuate during the year, but in 2015 the numbers have been exceedingly volatile, Construction activity dropped in January and March, but had a 6.9 percent rise in February. 

Do you have a home improvement project that you’ve had in your sights for a while, but something is holding you back — like the perception of a flat real estate market?