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

A 1750s farmhouse has a beautifully carved sandstone facade and offers sweeping views of the vineyards and the river.

In downtown Manhattan, new condo developments offer owners both single-house-style privacy and luxe-building-style amenities.

Where others saw a ruin, the buyer of a house in Millburn — a former contractor — perceived buried charm.

A gated community on Coney Island surrounded by sandy beaches, Sea Gate has a suburban feel.

The Yankee shortstop is selling an apartment on the 88th floor of Trump World Tower.

Until the financial crisis, foreigners had been a significant force in the real estate market, an area broker said.

A 1907 brownstone in Washington; a 1914 English Tudor in Kansas City, Mo.; and a 1925 bungalow in Sarasot., Fla.

The difference between viewing housing as a luxury good or as a staple is the subject of a debate about the recovery.

The property market in Stockholm has been insulated from the worst of the housing crisis by low interest rates and by a shortage of apartments in the city.

Laka Nona medical city will include a medical school, hospitals, research centers and space for biotech start-up companies.

Soho House is undergoing a $100 million expansion, including a new exclusive club in Miami Beach.

Real estate listings noting a need for TLC acknowledge problems with a property. Just what those are is not always clear.

Some economists and analysts urge a dose of shock therapy that would shift benefits to future homeowners from current ones: Let the housing market crash.

Two longtime loftmates appeared to be going their separate ways, but the hunt for new apartments landed them in the same building in Williamsburg.

In the weak economy, more buyers are being asked to shoulder the so-called flip tax.

West End Avenue and vicinity was once a stronghold of town houses. Three of the now-rare breed bear distinctive traces of the attentions of recent owners.

At River Pointe, a community in Manchester, N.J., solar technology that earns energy credits is a standard feature in each house.

Questions for a principal of the law firm Proskauer Rose and a co-chairman of the firm’s real estate division.

The wealthy and celebrities often buy property under limited liability companies, often with whimsical names.

Once a grand mansion steps from Central Park, it had fallen into disrepair. Now it is for sale for $8.95 million.

One in eight homeowners had household debt exceeding half the monthly income in 2008, a recent report says.

A parking space that comes with the lease; a condo building with no emergency reserve fund; a landlord’s liability in a burglary; dealing with fees on security deposits.

An art collector builds a nontraditional house in an Alpine village where life hasn’t changed that much in decades.

On Lake Waramaug, a converted boathouse has a stone foundation, a wraparound deck and direct access to the water.

A half-dozen buildings on Second Avenue will house ventilation equipment, disperse smoke and allow for evacuation from subway tunnels in emergencies.

A one-bedroom condo in Philadelphia, a three-bedroom bungalow in Tennessee and a two-bedroom house in Wisconsin.

Developers in Midtown are refurbishing older buildings, using tax credits and public financing, as much as they are building from scratch.