If you have a couple of seasons of sailing pacers you will do well on most hobies. The biggest differences will be boat speed. This will impact apparent wind, sail tuning and downwind jibing, which is much easier on a cat. Tacking will be harder. You will have to pay more attention to the sails and rudders before, during and after.
There are a few threads on here about things to look for when buying a boat. Those will give you some good pointers. At a minimum check the rigging.
Have fun and have at it.