When buying a home, there are a lot of obvious decisions that you'll be making. Which house you want to buy, which loan you're going to choose, how long the loan will be for, etc. Then there are also a lot of not-so-obvious ones. What are they and how can you be prepared for them?

1. To get a mortgage or to not get a mortgage
Surprisingly, 1/3 of American homeowners don't have a mortgage. And it's not just because they paid it off. 30% of Americans buy homes with 100% cash! While many of these home buyers are investors, some are also normal homebuyers who have either saved up or recently received a large windfall and are using it to buy a home.
2. How much to put down
If you're saving up every penny just to afford the minimum down payment on your home, than this isn't a not-so-obvious decision for you. However, if you have a little more money to play with, this decision can be a delicate one. While most homebuyers think that by asking for a loan with $X down and monthly payments no more than $Y is enough of a decision, that's not all the options you have. You may also be able to qualify for the same home with less money down, giving yourself more money in the bank. Or you could even qualify for a pricier home and have the same monthly payment level with a larger down payment. Not sure which one is right for you? Check out our calculator page to start figuring out how much home you can afford.
3. What's really important to you?
This is a very critical decision that usually happens unconsciously. As you begin budgeting your new home purchase and making both obvious and not-so-obvious decisions about how you're going to finance your home, you begin deciding what in your life is most important to you. Are you willing to sell your rarely-used motorcycle to afford the home or your dreams? Or are you willing to get a smaller home?

The decisions are all yours and personal to make. If you want to talk to a professional about all of your options, you can ask your real estate agent or contact one of our home purchase experts to get their expert opinion.

What do you think? What's the toughest decision you've had to make as a homebuyer? Was there one decision you weren't fully prepared for? Let us know!