Buying a house surrounded by Florida... to buy or not to buy? Taxes, Insurance... HELP!?

My husband and I are are tired of renting, however we want to find a house that we absolutely adore especially since the market is the method it is... we have lots to choose from. We can't spend a lot, and would approaching to buy a first house for an investment and to start our family. Any suggestions for first time home buyers? What are the taxes and insurance like? We are hoping to find somewhere by the stop of this year. We live in Pinellas county.

Is it even a good time to buy?

Any direction is appreciated!
Answers:
You should be able to get other in Pinellas County......locate a good material estate agent and start looking. People are desperate to sell now, so it's a buyer's souk. Get yourself pre-approved at the bank before looking so you will know a moment ago how much you can spend. Taxes and insurance all depend on where exactly you live ( flood zone, evacuation zones , etc) Good luck.
How much can you afford calculator...
http://www.ginniemae.gov/2_prequal/intro…

Up to $10,000 for Florida residents for down payment assistance if your income qualify
http://www.floridahousing.org/Home/Homeb…

Foreclosure listings
http://www.freeforeclosuredatabase.com/
http://www.realtytrac.com/foreclosure/fo…

I'm not sure about insurance, but some of the calculators automatically take teh average into statement. The actual amount will depend on how close to teh water you buy, your credit rating...etc.
If you can find a place within your budget I woudl definately buy in a minute. We are going to be looking soon too in NWFlorida :)



**ETA**We had a special on TV end night abotu hurricane preparedness, nothign else on so I watched. Anyhow they mentioned that flood insurance averages $370 a year-that's JUST for flood though since most regular home owners policy lone cover wind damage.


Related Questions:
Should we nullify the house insurance ?   I own basically dropped my High Definition projection TV..will house insurance cover it?   Is the money we received from the insurance company from our house fire taxable?   I'm hiring a friend to do essential cabinetmaking at my house, but he's uninsured.  Can I carry him short-term insurance?   Comparative house insurance document?