An open house enables a buyer to check out a residence in-person and determine if this home matches or exceeds his or her expectations. However, a buyer who fails to plan ahead for an open house may struggle to make the most of this opportunity.

Ultimately, there are several things you need to consider before you attend an open house, such as:

1. Your Home Must-Haves

Make a list of must-have home features – you will be glad you did. With this list in hand, you can check out a house in-person and determine if it has the features you require.

You also may want to put together a list of preferred cities and towns prior to launching a house search. This list will allow you to hone your home search – and your search for open house events – to a small group of cities and towns.

2. Your Homebuying Budget

As a homebuyer, it is crucial to optimize your time and resources as you search for your dream residence. If you enter the housing market with a budget at your disposal, you can avoid the risk of attending an open house for a residence you may be unable to afford.

To establish a homebuying budget, you should review your current finances. You may want to meet with banks and credit unions as well. And if you get pre-approved for a mortgage, you will know exactly how much you can spend on a residence when you start your house search.

3. Your Homebuying Timeline

There is no guarantee that attending one open house will help you find your dream residence. But if you maintain flexibility, you can attend a variety of open house events and boost the likelihood of discovering a residence that falls in line with your expectations.

Furthermore, you should be ready to act quickly if you attend an open house and want to buy a residence following the event. In this scenario, you should be prepared to work diligently to put together a competitive offer to purchase the home.

As you get set to attend an open house, you may want to employ a real estate agent, too. A real estate agent can keep you up to date about open house events in cities and towns where you want to reside. Plus, a real estate agent can attend an open house with you and provide plenty of homebuying tips and insights.

Let's not forget about the support a real estate agent provides once you find a house you want to purchase, either. At this point, a real estate agent will help you put together a competitive homebuying proposal. And if your offer to purchase is accepted, a real estate agent will help you finalize your house purchase.

Consider the aforementioned factors closely before you attend an open house. By doing so, you can prepare for an open house and use the opportunity to determine if a residence is right for you.

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The advancement of technology has inadvertently aided the schemes of scam artists, and even though people are now aware enough to avoid being scammed through texts, calls, and emails, technology has only given these scammers new sophisticated ways to maintain their level of menace in the world today through the use of the internet.

Address fraud, a type of identity theft, is one of such ways that scammers dupe people. The change of address process for someone who is moving is unbelievably simple as one fills in a form online or on paper, and all that is needed is mover's name, old address, new address, and signature. 

This change of address form is so that mail redirects to the new address and homeowners that move don't miss any mail. The simplicity of this process is also what makes address scams easy, and frequent because really, all they need is a name, the address, and a forged signature and every single piece of mail redirects to wherever they want it to go. This simplicity gives them access to credit card information and very personal information like bank statements, and health care statements.

In fact, the clutter moving creates makes it hard for them (the movers) to notice any missing mail giving these scammers days, and sometimes even weeks to cause havoc. There are different ways to protect oneself from this kind of fraud and they include;

Make a switch to paperless communication 

Request all important documents like bank statements, insurance statements, and other materials with sensitive information to be sent via email not physical mailbox anymore. As long as you have hard-to-crack passwords and are security conscious, this should deter identity theft and online fraud. 

Protect new information 

Tell as few close friends about the new address as possible. Keep documents containing information about new address away from outsiders. If some of these documents need discarding, it's best to shred them to bits first. 

Update address

Take note that to prevent cases of fraudulent change of address a confirmation card is sent to both the old and new address. The mail should be checked daily to detect and report any suspicious change that wasn't put in effect by the mover. Notify the bank, school, utilities (electricity, phone, tv, gas, etc.), and every other service utility about the move as soon as possible. Don't be put in a vulnerable position when something as little as a loyalty card gets sent to the wrong address, letting all the wrong people know of the recent move.

Be sure to complete your mail change forms correctly before moving and confirm that it is done correctly to avoid being scammed. 

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