The 5 Biggest Mistakes Made by FirstTime Homeowners

Buying your first home is an emotional experience. It should be fun and exciting, but instead it can be the most stressful and overwhelming experience in one's life. Learning from others' mistakes can help you avoid making the same ones nd therefore, allow you to focus on the fun and excitement of buying your first home. A good realtor will help you learn from his/her experiences, so don't hesitate to sk as many questions possible to take advantage of his or her experience

Here are the top 5 mistakes first time homeowners often make:

1) Don't buy a home to fit your furniture. Think "big picture" Your waterbed doesn't fit in the master bedroom of your dream home? Buy a new bed! You are probably making the biggest investment of your life to date and furniture can and will be replaced. If the home is in the right location for you, within your price range, with a floor plan that meets your needs, don't let furniture determine whether or not you make an offer.

2) Don't buy a home thinking it will be the only home you ever own. The average length of time one lives in their first home is 5 years. Therefore, it is best to buy a home that a) fits your 3-6 year needs, b) has potential to appreciate, and c) can be re-sold easily.

Conversely, Don't buy a home assuming you will sell it and move soon. Unless you have the type of job that will relocate you within a fixed time, don't assume you will move in 3-6 years. Why? Things change as life changes; people lose jobs, get promotions, have children, etc. If you buy a home based on your short term needs you may get yourself into a situation that "forces" you to sell because the current home no longer suits your needs. That can be expensive for you down the road. So what do you do? Try to buy a home that will fit your needs 5-6 years from now, and make sure it will allow you the flexibility to accommodate changes in your lifestyle as they arise.

Example: A couple with 1 child, spouse works from home, buys a 3 bedroom home. They use 1 BR for the master, 1 BR for their child, and 1 for a home office. However, they also determine that if they have a second child, their basement can be re-finished to accommodate a small home office. Not necessarily ideal, but it will allow them to live in the home with a second child, without requiring them to sell if they're not ready, or the market is not ideal in a few years.

3) Don't let easy decorating issues prevent you from buying your dream home. Does the home have ugly red shag carpets? Is it decorated with "your grandmothers" floral rose wallpaper? Does it look like the previous homeowners used the entire Crayola crayon palette to paint the walls? Don't let those issues like these prevent you from making an offer, as they are easy to replace or fix. In fact, you can use these issues to your advantage! When making an offer factor in the cost to replace the rug or repaint the walls.

4) Location, location, location. You can always update your kitchen and bath, install beautiful hardwood floors, or professionally landscape your yard - but you can't pick your lot up and move it. Make sure you take the time to carefully understand your neighborhood and location - it will make a big difference when you want to re-finance or sell your home. Locations that can negatively impact appreciation and value are: a) homes that are near power lines, b) sub-par school systems, c) busy streets and intersections, and d) no off-street parking. Simple rule of thumb, buy the home you can afford in the best location for your needs, and never buy the most expensive/nicest home in a neighborhood. The least expensive home in the nicest location will usually have the highest appreciation upside.

5) Don't ever buy the first home you look at. Always looks at as many homes as possible, including a few that ares both over and under your budget. This will give you a good sense for things you like and need, things you didn't even realized you liked, nd things you can live without. Looking at several homes, including those over and under your budget prepares you to make an offer when you find the "right" home. In some areas homes sell within 1-2 days of going on the market. Being confident that "this is the one" and "the price is right" can make the difference between buying your first choice, or having to settle for the runner-up.