How To Create A House Buying Wish List For Your Dream Home

Buying a house is one of the most exciting things you will ever do. But there are LOTS of little details involved - details which can be very costly if they are overlooked.

Unfortunately, I made all 10 of these mistakes when buying my first house. Even though I thought I was very prepared. But with so much going on, I still missed them...and cost myself THOUSANDS of dollars!

Which is why I created www.HouseBuying-Tips.com. Now, you can learn ahead of time how to save yourself lots of money. So, here is the first mistake you should avoid when buying your next house:

#1: Know EXACTLY what you want before you start house hunting, AND put it in writing!

Owning your own home is a great feeling. It's the American dream. And it's one of the biggest purchases you will ever make!

So the more time you spend preparing, the easier your life will be.

One of the most important things you can do to get ready to buy your first house is to decide EXACTLY what you want - and write it down on paper.

Sounds simple. But over the next few months you'll see that the house buying process is one of the most intense, stressful, busy - and exciting - times of your life. So, BEFORE you start looking for a new house, it's a good idea to have a very clear picture of the type of house you want.

It's certainly helpful to have a picture in your mind. But as you get further into the process, you'll find it helpful to have a list you can refer to (especially when the "files" in your mind start getting overloaded!)

Of course, once you start looking at houses, your list can change:

...you'll find things you never thought of
...things you thought were important but may not be any more
...things you thought you could afford but can't
...and things you didn't think you could afford, but you can.

So don't be afraid to make changes.

When writing your list, think of all the qualities you want in a house...and in a neighborhood...and in a town (or city). Include EVERYTHING you think is important. While this won't guarantee that you will get everything you want, it will help you be able to prioritize what you think is most important.

Here are some of the items you should include on your list:

• Town or city (which towns do you WANT to live in, which ones would you live in if you had to, which ones would you NOT live in no matter what!)
• Area of town
• School system
• Type of neighborhood (With kids, without kids, close to highway or main road, out in the country, etc)
• Type of house (Cape, Ranch, Colonial, etc)
• Size of house (Square footage, number of bedrooms, number of bathrooms, etc.)
• Size of rooms
• Layout of house
• Yard (Landscaped nicely so you don't have to do any work getting it in good shape, not as nicely landscaped so you might get a better deal but need to put in more work, etc.)
• Price (Are you willing to pay less for an older house or one that needs more work?)
• Anything else that is important to you (For example, I knew I did not want a house on a hill. But our first offer was for a house on a hill. Which left me feeling very uncomfortable. Luckily, the deal fell through, but without a list I got caught up in the excitement.)

(NOTE: If you are buying your house with someone else, make sure you ask your spouse, partner, or significant other what they think is important as well. If at all possible, try to combine your list so you can work together.)

Once your list is ready, put the items on your list in order of importance, so when you have a million other little details in your mind, you can look at your list and not have to rely on your memory.

So, do yourself a favor and find a quiet place, take a few moments to write out your list, put it in order of importance, and save yourself a bunch of stress!

Kris Bickell is the owner of HouseBuying-Tips.com, a site that helps first time home buyers avoid the costly mistakes that many new homebuyers make. For tips on buying a house, getting a mortgage, finding a realtor, and getting out of debt, visit: http://www.HouseBuying-Tips.com, or sign up for the free "How To Avoid These 10 Costly Mistakes When Buying Your First Home" email course at: http://www.HouseBuying-Tips.com/course.html© 2005 HouseBuying-Tips.com

More than 40 states signed onto a proposed $25-billion deal with major mortgage servicers over faulty foreclosure practices. New York, Nevada and Delaware joined California in holding out for better terms.

More than 40 states signed onto a proposed $25-billion settlement with major mortgage servicers over faulty foreclosure procedures, but California, New York and other key states were still not among them.

California has until Monday to share in a multi-state deal with banks to obtain mortgage relief and reforms. Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris, who walked away from talks last year, says the door remains open.

With a Monday deadline at hand, California officials have resumed direct talks with the Obama administration about joining a multibillion-dollar, multi-state mortgage settlement with the nation's largest banks, a source said Sunday.

The talk show host pays $12 million for the 4,088-square-foot house with four bedrooms and four bathrooms. The ocean-view home sits on 1.26 bluff-top acres with beach access.

In one of the more talked-about transactions in town, actors Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have sold their Malibu beach house to daytime host and comedian Ellen De Generes for $12 million.

The four-bedroom, five-bathroom house built in 1920 for industrialist James Wigmore lists for $2,875,000.

A decorative cast stone entrance opens to this restored Spanish Colonial Revival-style house in Pasadena's South Orange Grove area. Built in 1920 for industrialist James Wigmore, the house retains such original details as coffered wood ceilings and arched doorways.

They don't believe they can sell their property for what it's worth, so they're spending money on making their homes more comfortable.

Do you fit any of these descriptions?

A biennial research report by the National Assn. of Realtors indicates that a handful of real estate agents and brokers and their clients either don't know the law or don't care to follow it.

When it comes to lawsuits, real estate agents and brokers tangle mostly among themselves.

The president aims to help about 3.5 million people with good credit who are unable to refinance at historically low rates because their homes are worth less than their mortgages.

 

The White House hopes to help millions of homeowners lower their monthly mortgage bill with a $5 billion to $10 billion plan to set up a streamlined refinancing program for people who are current on their payments.

The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index of 20 large U.S. cities fell 1.3% in November from October as foreclosures continue to drag down the housing market.

Three straight months of home-price declines in the biggest U.S. cities showed that foreclosures remain a significant drag on a housing market that is entering its fifth year of deterioration.

L.A. Clipper Chris Paul may be quick down the court, but he moves pretty fast when it comes to buying multimillion-dollar real estate too.