By far the biggest mistake Buyers (and Sellers) make is in how they select an Agent or, as the case may be, end up with this or that agent. (See “How to Select an Agent.”)
A good Agent can save you literally thousands of dollars and help you avoid a minefield of problems. Buyers should interview agents the same way newspaper columnists advise Sellers to interview Agents. Do not think for one second that they are all the same.
A very close second is Buyers not getting their financing all but taken care of BEFORE they start going through homes.
Don\'t misunderstand me; I’m not saying it\'s definitely best to have your financing arranged before interviewing and picking an Agent to work with.
On the contrary, Agents can give you an idea of how much a home in this or that area will cost, which allows you to better shop the thousands of loan programs available. Furthermore, they can probably refer you to a number of lenders. Good Agents won\'t refer you to a lender their customers have had bad experiences with.
Another BIG mistake is letting cosmetic factors OVERLY influence your buying decision. By "cosmetics", I mean, exterior/ interior paint colors, carpet, or maybe a house is just plain dirty.
A little talked about mistake both Buyers and Sellers make is turning into, "THE MASTER NEGOTIATOR". This mistake is far more common in men than in women and goes something like this.
After looking at who knows how many homes, and, with the assistance of their agent, educating themselves so they know exactly what they can expect to get a home at the price they\'re shopping for. They come across THE home that is the best home for the money. They decide they want to write an offer.
Out comes the master negotiator cap.
Now, it\'s more important that they "win" the negotiation, than actually get the home they\'ve looked weeks for, and have only made an offer on because it was the best house FOR THE MONEY. Their concern now is not what they\'re getting, but what they\'re getting off.
I\'ve seen more than one person risk losing a house for less than $200. Thank goodness the other sides kept their cool, otherwise, guess whose fault it would\'ve been had the contract fallen apart?