Originally Posted by Peaches

I spend a LOT of time on real estate sites. I track properties in my area on how much they've sold for, if they sell again, how much for then, how long they were on the market, etc. I started doing this when I planned to move out of state and was looking for condos in the ATL area as a 2nd home 7 or so years ago - it's easy if it's something I can do .

Just blindly walking out the door and putting 5% down on the first house you like and doing something crazy like getting an ARM and unless you're VERY lucky, you're not going to do well.

Houses are the biggest purchases most of us will ever make - but I'm amazed at how little research so many people put into it when buying.