The home buying process can be an emotional roller coaster, especially if it's your first time. It is, after all, one of the biggest financial moves you'll ever make. So before you begin house hunting, make sure you have a good plan in place.

Here are five tips for success with first-time home buying:

Home Buying Tip #1 - Bring a Friend Along
Do you have a friend or family member with strong opinions on everything? You know the one. Well, bring them along during your house hunting trips!

When you think about it, it makes perfect sense. The home buying process stirs up a lot of different emotions -- excitement, anxiety, joy, fear, frustration, exhilaration. And while these emotions are perfectly normal, they can cloud your judgment. That's not something you want when making a big financial decision.

You can balance this out by bringing a friend or family member along on your house hunting trips. This gives you an objective ally who can help you identify the pros and cons of each house. Chances are, they'll also be able to spot aspects of a house you might have missed otherwise.

Home Buying Tip #2 - Take Pictures of Each Home
Do you have a digital camera, or do you know somebody who does? If so, you have the ideal tool to help with the home buying process. Take pictures of every house you visit, and then categorize them in folders by house address. This will help you recall the details of each house later on (when the details tend to blur together).

The photos will also give you an opportunity to see each home more objectively, after your initial excitement has faded. Then you can more easily decide which houses you