How do spellcasters obtain their familiars?
Do they go out and search for the creature they want? In this case, should they pick only creatures available in their region? And how does it work with extraplanar familiars (Imps, Quasits, Elementals, etc.)?
Or does the process work like one of the effects of the Conjuration Subschools (Calling, Creation, Summoning, Teleport) and the familiar pops up or is created through a magical ritual? In this case, is it possible to pick a familiar which belongs to a different habitat (a turtle in an artic region, an owl in a desertic region, a monkey in an urban region, etc.)?
I always imagined them casting a spell, meditating in a circle of some type, and whichever creature breaks the circle, becomes the familiar.
Obviously that's not how EVERYONE rolls, just my two copper.
There is no restriction to gaining a familiar (unless otherwise stated in an archetype etc.). Fluff-wise, I would work with your GM to decide exactly how the familiar was obtained. Rules wise, a spellcaster just gets it.
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IIRC, in 2nd Ed, you had to do all that. You memorized a spell to "call" your familiar, burned some incense in a brazier, and if you were in a forest, you'd have different forest critters answer your call. And there wasn't a guarantee you'd get what you wanted. Also, if you wanted an imp or something exotic, you had to befriend one first, and then use its name in the ritual to finalize the deal.
I could be off, since rules weren't as black and white as they are today. That's what I remember. But in Pathfinder, you just get what you want. You can reskin it however you want.
Agreed with the above. As far as I'm aware, there are no mechanical restrictions on gaining a familiar (outside of a 'waiting period' set forth in some of the classes specifically, when you've lost a familiar\companion and are waiting on a new one).
I found these lines in the SRD 3.5, under the descriptions of the Sorcerers and the Wizards:
"A sorcerer can obtain a familiar. Doing so takes 24 hours and uses up magical materials that cost 100 gp. A familiar is a magical beast that resembles a small animal and is unusually tough and intelligent. The creature serves as a companion and servant.
The sorcerer chooses the kind of familiar he gets."
"A familiar is a normal animal that gains new powers and becomes a magical beast when summoned to service by a sorcerer or wizard."
It seems familiars were conjured creatures that appeared at the end of a specific magical ritual performed by their future masters.
I think this can be applied even to Pathfinder without problems of sort.
My familiar is not my class feature, he is my friend. XD