Couple caveats about buying a house

1. Make sure you have some money saved to deal with surprise expenses before you buy so you can handle things like appliances dying randomly.
2. Don't buy a house unless you plan on keeping it for at least 7 years. Selling a house is pain since you have to act like you don't live in your home and usually real estate commissions and closing costs Eat up all the appreciation if you sell too soon

For privacy purposes it's better to buy an unit in a condo, than a house. In a house your neighbors can easily look out their windows and see who visits you, whose car is parked in front of your house. In a condo it's much harder because the same main entrance is used by many people and it's difficult determine which unit a visitor entering the main entrance is going to, so it's harder to connect the dots.