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Credit score health means everything when it’s time to purchase a home. Fortunately there are things you can do ahead of time to assure that something as basic as your credit won’t stand in the way of you and your home purchase. Your credit – including ensuring credit reports are correct, knowing your credit score, and acting to improve it – is among the most confusing topics related to personal finance. Yet it’s extremely important – particularly if you’re planning to buy a house, and especially if you’re a first-time buyer. Your credit is one of the first things a lender will look at when you apply for a mortgage.

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Seller Financing, also known as owner financing, is growing in popularity in today’s economy.  With the credit markets slowing down and people finding it harder and harder to borrow, seller financing is looking better and better as an alternative to traditional financing. Seller financing is when the seller of the property basically agrees to take payments rather than a lump sum.

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New home shopping can be invigorating! When shopping for a new home, it’s easy to fall in love. You can find yourself dazzled by the sprawling backyard, trendy kitchen, or sky-high ceilings, and want to make an offer right then and there. But it’s important to take a step back and take the time to evaluate the perhaps less-exciting details. These often overlooked details may ultimately lead to significant, costly issues.

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Property value can be affected by many different things. We all know that living near a good school increases the value of your home. But who knew a neighboring cemetery can adversely affect your property value? Or that proximity to a hospital isn’t a good thing? In fact, we now know – or should know – that nothing is more important when selling your home than your neighborhood. So if you’re buying, think ahead; purchase your dream home in the wrong location and you may be buying into a nightmare.

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Single women buying homes in the US are on the rise. “Skip the spouse, buy the house”. That was a line from a recent Bloomberg news story about single women buying homes on their own. It’s catchy, but it’s also true. Single women currently account for approximately 17% of new homebuyers in the U.S., versus 7% of single men.

Why? Despite the wage gaps that remain between men and women in the workforce, many millennial women appear to value homeownership more than their male counterparts. And they’re adjusting their lifestyles accordingly to make it happen.

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Homeownership is still the surest way to accumulate wealth. Opponents of homeownership claim it’s the American nightmare. However self-made millionaire David Bach is doubling down on his faith in real estate. He thinks that not prioritizing homeownership is “the single biggest mistake millennials are making.” Buying a home is “an escalator to wealth,” he tells CNBC.

Young adults in particular aren’t hopping on this escalator, and it’s a costly mistake. Bach warns: “If millennials don’t buy a home, their chances of actually having any wealth in this country are little to none. The average homeowner to this day is 38 times wealthier than a renter.”

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Buying a home? Avoid making these costly errors

If you’re thinking about buying a home, this might be the best time to do so. The housing market is still going strong and millennials are a big factor.

Total mortgage application volume surged 25.5 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis for the week ending Oct. 2 compared to the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Applications to refinance and to purchase homes are now at the highest level in five years.

Millennials represent the largest share of homebuyers, according to an analysis by the National Association of Realtors. Nearly one-third of all homebuyers, and 68 percent of first-time buyers, were 34 or younger last year. And those numbers are expected to grow.

Buying a home or know someone who is? Here are three common, and potentially costly, mistakes to avoid.

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Owner Financing carries with it great benefits for both the buyer and seller. But as with anything, there are down sides as well. It would behoove both parties to be as educated as possible about owner financing before entering into any contractual agreement.

Read the following article on owner finance written by Jean Folger and published on Investopia.

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