Think the keys to your new dream home are as good as yours, do you? Not so fast. In this tough financial climate, some unexpected issues might scuttle the deal.

When a seller wants to sell a home and finds a buyer who wants to buy it, you'd think they'd have a deal. What could go wrong?

These days, plenty. In this tough financial climate, there are both longstanding pitfalls and a crop of new ones. At best, these can cost you time or money. Or both. At worst, the home you want could slip from your grasp.

The appraisal kills the deal

Even after you and the seller have agreed on a price, the appraiser — the expert assigned by the bank to authenticate the home's value — can ruin everything.

A little background: Your lender needs to know that the home you're buying is worth what you're paying. Banks are touchy on this subject at the moment. They own nearly 1 million foreclosed homes and stand to inherit millions more from defaulting borrowers. Your lender wants to be sure your new home won't be added to this pile.

What's your home worth?

Appraisers arrive at a home's value in part by comparing recent sales of nearby homes. Falling prices, foreclosures and short sales in the neighborhood make these comparisons tough.

Your sale can suffer if the appraiser doesn't know the neighborhood. Some federal rules meant to prevent lenders and appraisers from getting too cozy have unintentionally increased pressure on appraisers, which has led to inaccurate appraisals.

Occasionally, though, the buyer enjoys a silver lining: In our experience, a small portion of sellers agree to drop the price after a low appraisal.

Pre-emptive action: Choose an agent with deep experience in the neighborhood. Here in Las Cruces, the Evelyn Bruder Dream Team is exactly the bunch to help you. They can work with the appraiser to show them the errors and the appraiser may revise the home's value to the price that a buyer and seller can agree on.

It’s important to be prepared when buying a home. For this reason, we’ve provided you with a free simple 10 step guide to the buying process.

Simply visit the link below for more information on how to get it.

http://www.buyingahomeinlascruces.com/home_buyers_guide_intro.php

Are you interested in other things that could kill your deal? Next week's Wednesday Morning Coffee will look at another problem that you can pre-empt.