Most Common Home Buying Mistakes to Avoid

Are you house hunting or about to start? Learn how you can buy the right house for you and your budget. 

Mistakes Home Buyers Make

Buying a house is usually one of the biggest purchases you can make and the financial paperwork of getting a mortgage gets complicated quickly. 

Besides having a down payment ready, you have other costs like 

• Home inspection
• Lender fees
• Appraisal
• Title search and insurance fees
• And so forth

If you’re buying a $300,000 home, you’re looking at paying anywhere from $6,000 to $15,000 in closing costs. If you’re living in an HCOL area, those numbers leap up. 

It's really important to make sure you're ready for this leap before you signed the papers.

You rush into it and you’re stuck with a mortgage you can’t comfortably afford, making your home a burden, not a blessing. 

If you live in a hot real estate market it’s even more of a challenge. You’re dealing with multiple bids, some of them being much higher than the listing price. Here in Raleigh, it’s not uncommon to be competing with all-cash offers. 

In the middle of 2020, my mom moved to be closer to us in Raleigh and we helped her with the home buying process. It was stressful because there were so many more buyers than houses. It took some patience, reflecting on what features she needed and truly wanted, and honing in on the budget, but thankfully she bought a great place for herself.  

Whether you’re a first-time buyer or not, my advice is to detach yourself emotionally from the process. That’s easier said than done. 

That’s why I want to share from the archives an interview I did with Jonathan White. He’s the author of A Tale of Two Houses: Our journey of buying a home the right way after buying one the wrong way. 

As you can guess from the title, Jonathan understands some of those house-buying traps many of us fall into. He made

In this episode we get into:

• Some of those home-buying myths that can get you into trouble
• Unexpected expenses that come up as a homeowner
• Why you need to run your own numbers

Are you ready? Let’s get started! 

Resources on Getting a Great Deal on Your Mortgage

If you’re looking to buy, here are some resources to help you find a great deal with your mortgage

• Best Budget and Money Apps: Personal Capital, Tiller, Mint
• Grow Your Stash Faster: High Yield Savings with CiT Bank
• Jumpstart Your Marriage and Your Money
• What You Need to Know About Mortgages
• Understand Mortgage Loan Options
• Free 5 Days to $5K Course
• 9 Questions to Ask Before Buying a House
• Is It Better to Rent or Own a Home?
• How to Snag a Great Deal When Buying a House
• Buying a Home: From Contemplation to Closing

Thank You to Our Sponsor Coastal!

Support for this podcast comes from Coastal Credit Union! If you’re living in the Raleigh Durham area and looking to bank better, come check out Coastal today.

See how Coastal can help you with your mortgage needs!

Rollover Your 401(k) Easily with Capitalize

We’re grateful for wonderful partners like Capitalize. Not only do they support the podcast, but they help make managing your money so much easier. 

Did you know that it’s estimated that there are currently over 24 million “forgotten” 401(k) accounts? In fact, the average American changes jobs every 4 years. 

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Avoid House Fever and Myths

Even though had a background in accounting, Jon wasn't immune to house fever.

Jon kept hearing from his friends how great home ownership was. Many comments he heard matched what we used to hear too.

Some of my ‘favorites' include:

• “Renting is throwing away money.”
• “Home ownership helps you build equity.”
• “Real estate is an investment that will pay off.”

While it may be well-intentioned or based on their personal experience, these comments may not be true for your circumstances.

You have to really look at the costs before you buy a house. Besides the obvious, there are expenses that homeowners may have that renters don't.

Taking care of your own maintenance is a big one.

Depending on where you live, you may find yourself buying property that is a part of an additional expense – a home association.

Before you buy a place that's a part of a home association:

• Know the bylaws.
• Check with residents. See if they're happy or not.
• Ask about fees over the last few years. Have they been increasing? Why?
• See what are the HOA's responsibilities and which would be yours.

Jon found out the hard way when he was hit with $5k special assessment!

Taking Time to Buy the Right House

Fast forward a few years, Jon got married. He and his wife used the principles and baby steps of Dave Ramsey to build their finances together.

Eventually they became parents and that's when they began to consider selling the condo and getting another house with some more space.

Seeing where things went wrong, Jon was determined to not let the same thing happen with their next house.

He and his wife started with running the numbers themselves.

Knowing what they could afford proved to beneficial as they were tempted with one house during their search.

While they didn't get that one, they did find a house that suited their family and was within their budget. Now years later, they're both happy with where they are.

If you want to be better prepared for your house hunt, please check out Jon's new book,  A Tale of Two Houses.

Jon goes into detail about the mistakes he made when he purchased his condo in 2006 and what he and his wife did right with their current home!

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Music Credit

Like the music in this episode? Come check out artists over at Audiio!