All Her Infinite Wisdom on Buying a House.

Ok, been too long since I have blogged. I miss you guys! Anyway, the house buying experience has been, well, educational. Here are a few things I have learned so far.

Your price range is higher on a stick built than on a Modular, even if the Modular is on more land. Lesson learned; if you can do it, go for the stick built home.

Find out what your top monthly payment is before going to a Lender. Lesson learned; some mortgage companies will lend you much more than you can comfortably afford each month. Find out how much that payment will get you on a loan and stick to it within around $5000.00. Believe it or not it is only about $30.00 more per $5K on the price of the home but that can add up fast.

Always find out how much the utility bills are costing the current owners. (especially in MT) We looked at a place, that because of poor insulation had $200-$300.00 utility bills per month. Add that to your $1500 mortgage and you are broke!

Make your Realtor work for that money. We have had many Realtors and, God Bless them, they are not always working for you. I mean lets face it, the more they can get you to buy the more money they make. Stick with your original monthly budget, no matter what!!! And always go with your gut on your Realtor, if doesn't feel right tell them you have decided not to use their services.

Home inspection 101; and some may not agree with me but spend the money to find out if there are issues with radon, and water. Mold-take it or leave it, but these are factors that could literally make it impossible for you to re-sell your property.

And finally, if you are buying your house with a partner, decide who handles what aspect of the process and which ones are shared. The boy and I learned this from a friend of ours who almost got divorced over their home buying experience. Remember this a joyful occasion in one's adult life and damn it, you better enjoy it.

Truly, I am here for you, a shoulder to sob on through your home buying experience. Ok, it is not all that bad and the end result will be incredible but wow, it is not for the weak at heart~