Analyze your situation and make sure that you are ready to buy a house or property, whether it is your first or not. Look at how long you will be in the area, at your job, family size, etc. Be sure it makes sense to buy now.
Discuss what your particular needs are with your family or partner before you start to look at properties. List your "must have" features and your other "nice to have, but not absolutely necessary" features. After viewing a few properties, re-evaluate your criteria. Needs will change over time. Be sure to include neighborhood criteria. Those are much harder to change than a few coats of paint.