I’ve got my feet up, sunglasses on, book in hand and the waves of the beach lapping in the background. . . in my mind.

In an ideal world, we’d all have that beach-front vacation spot we escape to every weekend, if only we had more beaches and more free time. That’s the excuse I seem to fall back on whenever I see my neighbours packing up the car for a holiday in their little slice of heaven.

But personal villas aside, there are plenty of possibilities for getting a vacation home. So how and where do you find one?

1. In the words of The Muppets, “We drive” – you probably have driven through communities and thought, “this would be a great place to stay in the summer”. Well, now is the time to revisit those places. Make a list of communities you want to consider and take note of any For Sale or For Lease signs. It’s an enjoyable way to start your vacation home search. Then narrow the choices down to the top five locations and start viewing some properties in those areas to see if you can find your own slice of vacation home heaven.

2. Get real: You’ve got your list of potential communities to vacation in and you’ve seen some houses, but that is only part of the solution. Ask yourself how often you plan to be at the house. Will you rent it out when you’re not there? Will you buy it outright or lease? Are you treating the home as an investment or just a holiday spot? And how will you afford it all? What will you do if your financial circumstances change? Do you have a back-up plan if something goes wrong?

3. Planning: Of your chosen locations, what suits your transportation options? Is the place near amenities? Or is the home remote and you’ll need to plan ahead every time you visit? What extra costs might that create? What kind of vacation spot do you really want? How much time do you realistically have per year to spend at this second home and how can you maximize its value from an investment perspective?

4. Taste test: You might want to rent a property in the area you’re looking to buy in to get a sense of the community and whether it’s the right fit for you and your family. It also lets you figure out how you can make breaks to the second home work with the rest of your life in terms of distance, time and budgets.

5. Get an agent: This is my favourite recommendation, but then again I’m fairly biased. A local real estate agent will know the community and any local issues you should be aware of when viewing properties. They will also be a good point of contact to give you an advance heads up when new vacation houses are about to come onto the market.

With the current market conditions, now is a good time to look for vacation homes. More properties generally are for sale now than there are buyers, so good deals are out there, depending on the area. But if you get some competition for your new holiday home be patient and persistent. Your real estate agent will help make the most of the opportunities in your vacation village.

Now that you’re heading off to find your vacation home, I’m heading back to my beach-front imagination in the sun. So please send me an invite to your first vacation house BBQ!