Things People Overlook until Closing or Moving: Ten Mistakes in the Renting vs. Buying Decision: Ways first-time buyers get burned: Getting financially ready for a home purchase: Getting Your Credit History in Order: Top Ways to find the right Neighborhood for You: How to Find Out if a Neighborhood is Up and Coming:

Things People Overlook until Closing or Moving: Damage previously hidden by furniture. Trails worn in the carpeting, and pristine spots previously covered by furniture. The appliances are leaving, too. Switching over phone service and utilities. Tricky if it's a weekend. Trickier still if you have to be there on a work day when the utility people come. Trickier still if you have to sign up in person and you're moving from across the country. Doors too narrow to fit your furniture through. Stairs and landings too narrow or winding to fit furniture through. The electrical outlets are too few and aren't grounded. No phone jack in the bedroom or home office. Sellers moving out at the same time you're moving in. Or after. Ten Mistakes in the Renting vs. Buying Decision: Still renting because it seems cheaper than buying. Buying when you plan to move in less than five years. Putting off the decision over a five-year period. Buying because you think you ought to own a house at this stage of your life. Buying a dream home a nightmarish distance from your job. Buying a home you can't afford. Buying a home you'll soon outgrow. Buying because you think you won't be able to afford real estate prices next year. Not understanding what you can afford. Assuming you can't get a loan because of student loan debt. Try prequalifying for a loan. You may be pleasantly surprised. Ways first-time buyers get burned: Paying the market value for the neighborhood, not the house. Buying the most expensive home on the block, only to see the rest of the neighborhood lower the property values. Buying a new home based on the model home, but getting a house without all those extras. Buying a home while prices are dropping, and they continue to drop and drop. Buying into a quiet little area that soon becomes overdeveloped. Buying a fixer-upper that is more money pit than makeover. Buying without an agent, unless you have an agent's knowledge and negotiating skills. Buying a nice house in a bad neighborhood. You can fix up a house on your own, but not a neighborhood. Getting financially ready for a home purchase: Make a budget of your monthly expenses. You'll be surprised how much little throwaway expenses pile up. Trim the fat from your budget. This will also give you an idea of how much you can scrimp to pay a mortgage payment, and what you're not willing to give up. Save as much as you reasonably can for a down payment. The more you can put down, the better you look to lenders. Start saving before you start looking. Get a copy of your credit report. This is how you're going to look on a home application. Unless you have a really good opportunity, try to stick with one job. Hopping jobs looks bad to some lenders. Insure yourself, your family, and your assets. Paying a little more for insurance on a regular basis is better than not being able to make your house payments because of a sudden, catastrophic cost. Getting Your Credit History in Order: Get good credit on your credit report. Landlords, telephone companies, and utilities usually report payment information if you're behind on your bills. The only news from them, usually, is bad news. If you have a good payment history with landlords and utilities, ask them to report your information to the credit bureaus. Pay down your outstanding balances on credit cards or other debts. If you don't have any credit cards, apply for a couple. Make modest purchases and pay the balances when the statements arrive. Don't change jobs now, unless it's for much better pay within the same line of work. Order a copy of your credit report. Immediately report any errors. Correcting errors can take months. Top Ways to find the right Neighborhood for You: Drive around. That can tell you more than an address. Does it look like a place where you'd like to live? Drive further out. Is it near places you'd like to go? Is it too near places you'd rather avoid? Drive through the neighborhood during commuting time. Is the neighborhood a throughway? Drive through the neighborhood at night. Is it quiet? Too quiet? (This may be a safety concern if it's a mixed business and residential area and the streets are deserted after 5.) Look at growth patterns. Check census data and newspaper archives. Does it look like it'll be bigger and busier than you'd like it to be? This is easier to gauge with an older neighborhood than a new one. Check titles and geographical surveys, especially if this is a new development. What did the area used to be? Swamp? Landfill? Farmland? If the area used to be flat, find out what the hills were built out of. Is the topsoil still there, or was it scraped off and sold to landscapers? Being near a school is no good if you don't have children. Being too near a school is no good if your kids are expected to walk every day, regardless of the weather. Being near a hospital is comforting. Being on the ambulance route is not. The same goes for fire engines. A strong neighborhood association is good if it still allows you to paint your house the way you want to paint it. You don't have to love your neighbors, but you should be able to live with them. Look for an affordable home in an affordable neighborhood. An affordable home in an unaffordable neighborhood may soon become unaffordable if your property taxes get too high. How to Find Out if a Neighborhood is Up and Coming: Obvious signs of neighbors fixing up their properties (painting, landscaping, etc.) Active neighborhood association Property values have been steadily rising Increasing amount of homeowners vs. renters New schools or parks constructed nearby Improvements in sidewalks, bike lanes, and crosswalks Nearby businesses are prospering Increased access to mass-transit City beautification projects Homes sell quickly