This is Optimal Finance Daily.

Things to consider before closing on your next house by Philip Taylor of PTMoney.com.

We recently closed on our new home purchase.

Hooray! I'm the newest homeowner you know.

I thought it might be helpful to share some lessons learned from my experience.

Firstly, you can still cancel the deal.

Even though you have a signed sales contract and signed lender application, you can still technically cancel the deal. Don't feel like you're completely trapped into this deal. If you find a reason not

to close, like you lost your job or you

got sick, then don't take on a mortgage that you won't be able to handle. Keep in mind, though,

that you've paid earnest money, and that might be forfeited. Also, the seller could potentially

sue you for breaking the sales contract. Still, neither is worse than taking on a loan that you cannot pay back.

This is serious debt and will ruin your credit for a long time if you couldn't handle it.

Number two, avoid committing too much to closing day. You don't own this home until you close the

loan and transfer the deed with the title company. A lot could go wrong,

which could delay your closing date. Therefore, avoid placing too much pressure on the actual closing

date. If possible, avoid scheduling movers or home improvement contractors, transferring mail

and utilities, and other date-sensitive things prior to officially

closing on the house. This doesn't mean you can't get quotes for removers and contractors and have

them on the ready. We actually met with potential contractors when we were having the house inspected.

Once we closed, we gave the contractors the green light and scheduled the work.

Overcommunicate with all parties.

This is huge. When you are a week away from your scheduled closed date, start communicating with

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