60 days from first purchase

[Keegan Mattick]

In about 60 days I'll be making my first purchase.  I've been overseas for work(military in Korea) and will get back to the states in Feb, and plan to get my first property in March.  I feel like 30 days of being back is long enough to wait and look, because I've done nothing but look at properties here on the internet for months.  

Anyway, I'm ready to go and make things happen, but there are a couple of things I haven't figured out yet.

Taxes.  I've never owned property.  How do I know how much to pay?  Is it a monthly thing? Is it mailed to me or is it something I should track?  

Lease.  Do all states have different laws?  Do counties within states have even more?  Can a lease in one location work in another?  I'm assuming I can't just type up whatever I want and then it becomes legal, so, where does a lease come from?

Any assistance would be appreciated