‘All realtors warn against this’: Woman goes furniture shopping before closing on a home. Then she gets a call from her realtor

Here's a surprising thing you're not supposed to do if you're in the home-buying process. It could cause you to lose the house.

Once you've found the right house and are in the closing process, it's natural to get excited. You start imagining what your life could look like in the home and even how you'll decorate. That rug that's on your Pinterest board would go great in the living room, and you already know exactly which sofa you want, too.

But you may need to slow down if you don't want to actively put your home-owning hopes in jeopardy.

Realtor warns against this common mistake

In a trending video with more than 17,000 views, soon-to-be homeowner Ellie (@reheatedcoffeeclub) shares the important advice her realtor gave her just in the nick of time.

Ellie explains that she was out furniture shopping for her new place when she got a call from her realtor. She warned her not to buy any furniture before the house process was finalized.

The TikToker says the thought hadn't crossed her mind at all, and she reached out to her best friend to warn her too.

"If you are under contract for a house, if you have not closed on your house yet, you do not want to go to those bigger furniture stores like Ashley Furniture, Rooms to Go, American Signature, etc. etc., and do any of the finance options," Ellie says.

"It'll go to your debt-to-income ratio, even if you are delaying payments for like 60 months. Like zero payment," Ellie says. "...That could mess up your home loan."

Instead, Ellie advises waiting until you close on the place to buy furniture.

Why can't you buy stuff while closing on a house?

The process of getting a house is hard enough, especially if you're a first-time homebuyer who doesn't know all of the particularities of the process. From the extra costs associated with closing to inspections and property taxes, there's so much to keep in mind.

On top of all that, you essentially have to freeze your financial life until the mortgage goes through, which usually takes a month or two, according to Nerd Wallet.

When you're in the closing process, lenders have you under a microscope, monitoring your financial moves to make sure you remain eligible for the loan.

Something like making a big ticket purchase or opening a new line of credit could jeopardize your home loan. Lenders approve you based on the financial information you initially shared with them.

If those numbers—like your debt-to-income ratio or cash on hand—vary too much, it could cause the lender to lose confidence in you and pull out of the process or reassess the terms of the loan, putting you at risk of not being able to get your dream home.

Commenters react

"Shop, get an idea what you want, BUT do not buy anything unless it is cash!" a person said.

"The person who tried to buy my house before me made this mistake and ended up getting denied for their loan after they were under contract! Lucky for me tho bc I ended up getting the house," another shared.

"This goes with any debt," a commenter chimed in.

"I never thought about that but I was moving from parents house to my first house and we waited till after closing so I could go in and measure every room and plan the layout before buying furniture," another said.

@reheatedcoffeeclub ‼️PSA for people buying a house. I would have never thought about this! ##buyingfurniture##furniture##furnitureshopping#homebuying ##home##mom##advice##moneyadvice##homeloan##millennial #sos #help ♬ original sound - Ellie ✨ Lifestyle & Shopfinds

The Daily Dot reacehd out to Ellie for comment via email and TikTok direct message.

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The post ‘All realtors warn against this’: Woman goes furniture shopping before closing on a home. Then she gets a call from her realtor appeared first on The Daily Dot.