When you are in escrow on a home, don’t buy anything big! Or medium big. Pretty much freeze everything until your escrow is closed. Sounds simple enough.

Yet if not given this warning, many excited new home buyers will go out and buy furniture for the new home. Maybe use one of those “no payments for a year” kind of deals. Don’t.

Even paying cash can be problematic. When you are approved for your loan, the lender is using very specific information that you provided. NOTHING should change on this information, unless it gets better.

If you are aiming for the tax credit or working on a short sale, this is critical!

If you have an extra $5,000 in the bank, your loan approval may be requiring it as reserves. If you have minimum credit card payments, and it goes up, your ratios may shift. Shift you right out of home ownership!

Can I buy a car? Can I have my credit checked? Can I change jobs? Can I spend $100 on my credit card? Can I get a new Kohl’s credit card so I can get the 15% off? No, no, no, no and no.

Anything you do should be approved by your lender first! If you can get your lender to say OK, then I will let you spend the money.

The banks are extra picky these days, and the slightest shift can cause a last minute loan denial. They will run a new credit report right before funding your loan, and if anything changes, it may be cause for a review or denial of your loan.