So, your on your way. You have found the house of your dreams. The lender tells you he thinks he can get this done. Your credit is good, your debt to income ratio is good, so are your trade-lines. You have all the winning factors to obtain a loan. I'm sure you feel great. Many customers who first come to us who are not pre-qualified come in having no idea what their credit score is and some believe their credit is so bad they can't get a pack of gum on loan. You then find, the total opposite. That somewhere along the line of restoring your credit worked ! Some will say, well if I can buy a house, I can buy a car, I can get the credit card I have been wanting, maybe I will go buy all new furniture for our new house.....STOP ! 
TALK TO YOUR LENDER or REAL ESTATE AGENT before you make any new purchases or it can stop the purchase of your new home ! When you apply for a mortgage loan there are several factors in evaluating you, your credit worthiness and home loan application. One of the things the Lenders, underwriting will look at is your credit score, your credit score tells them how well you have managed your credit over the years, they will also look at your debt to income ratio. They will give you credit for all the verifiable income you have and look at what you have going out from that money. If you are over extended this will hurt your chances for obtaining a mortgage loan. That is why it is crucial to NOT run out and buy anything or at least until your lender tells you its okay. Use extreme caution and listen to the wisdom and advice of your lender and/or agent as they want you to be in your new home ! 
Don't get ahead of yourself through all your excitement. All the other things will come and will come in time. But get into your new home FIRST. Listen to your lender/agent, they will give you the green or red light, but you as a word of caution should always stay in yellow....
A simple over-view and rules to live by when purchasing your new home is :
Don't make any major purchases such as a new car, expensive electronics or appliance, or anything else that you cannot pay cash for. The extra payments may prevent you from getting a loan.
Don't move money from one account or investment to another. One of the things a lender is concerned about is the source of funds for your down payment and closing costs. The lender will ask for statements for the last 3 months for all your bank and investment accounts and even your company 401K and retirement accounts.
Lenders like to see what is referred to as "seasoned money", that is, money that has been accumulating in an account over a period of months or years. If your bank account has a large deposit that was made less than 3 months ago they may think the money was a loan from a relative who is trying to help you qualify for a loan. Then you will have to prove where the funds came from which can be a time consuming process.
Please, leave your money where it is until you talk to a loan officer. And don't move a significant amount around without letting the lender know about it in advance.
The reward for your patience is ohhh sooo bitter sweet !
Melissa Grant
931-287-2534
lissalgrant@yahoo.com
Licensed Real Estate Agent in TN
Pointe Realty Co
109 Mariners Point
Crossville, TN 38555-5740
Melissa - good sound advise, you are a very good blogger!
Best regards from Charlottesville!
Charles McDonald
Keith and Robin - I am seeing all to much people getting ahead of themselves. A couple of months ago I actually had customers who DID qualify for a loan, on a very fixed income no less which was great, well, DID, until they went and bought a brand new truck with a payment of $482.00 per month and only $1100.00 verifiable income. I TOLD THEM NOT TO DO THIS, THE LENDER TOLD THEM NOT TO DO THIS, so when they came to show off their new truck, I also introduced them to their new home and hope it will sleep comfortably for them ! If you could have seen the look on their face ! At that point I didn't care what they thought of my comment, I worked hard for them, and in the end 2 weeks before closing I knew I wasn't going to get paid for all my hard work.
Charles - Well, hello, Charlottesville, haven't seen you in a couple days was getting worried :) ! Thanks for your kind words ! See you in the rain !
I may have overlooked it in your post, but another important item is when shopping for a lender do not let them run a credit check as it affects your score, too. I always advise my clients to tell the lender no credit score until I decide to use your firm
Karen
Melissa,
Very good advice and well said :0)
Keep it up,
Tom Weiss
Great advice Melissa,
Time and time again right after a cotracthas ben accepted I hear the clients talk about going furniture shooping and I always give them the advice you just layed out. No running up credit card bills at least until after the closing.
Tom - Thanks ! and thanks for always giving me the thumbs up !
Hugh - Thanks again and as always you give such great examples in your responses.
Great advice. So far I've only seen one instance where the Buyer made a vehicle purchase prior to Closing, and it did not upset the real estate loan. I felt like we dodged a huge bullet with that one.
John
Very good article and great information to clients who may not know better.....
This is now a featured article at the First Time Homebuyer group on AR!!!
Howdy Melissa
You have written some very fine tips for home buyer's.
Have a good one
Dale
Melissa:
Very good/important information for Firsties. So many younger people will be in debt up to their eyeballs by trying to keep up with their buddies-who are also in debt. Nice to hear your helpful thoughts...
Had a buyer purchase a new car the month before closing - and worse, he is a real estate agent. Luckily, it didn't impact the sale. Great advice - that is often overlooked.
Excellent information, though overlooked mostly especially by those who should not.
Excellent advice! What a great reminder!
Melissa - How about this one - Don't change jobs. I was in the mortgage industry before I got into real estate and I saw some people do some crazy things. One borrower purchased a brand new car, which lowered their credit score, which changed their entire loan, including increasing their interest rate. One borrower changed jobs just before the loan closed. It's hard for people to understand how their decisions may affect the purchase of their home. Most of them end up blaming the lender, and that's partially why I am in real estate today.
Great advice, if the buying public will only listen
great info / can i repost on my blog?
thank you so much.
I overheard a loan officer talking to a buyer and his message went something like..."Did you cosign for your boyfriend's motorcycle?" "Well, you no longer qualify for your home loan." Ouch!
Great tips. Thanks for sharing.
Great blog Melissa. We have a letter that goes out of the don't while you are waiting to close.
Some of the don't are:
Don't change jobs and if you have too let your lender know right away.
Don't apply of the defferred interest for furniture or appliances for credit cards.
Don't deposit or transfer funds from one account to another.
Don't attempt to consolidate bills before speaking with your lender!
Don't let anyone pull your credit!
Don't buy or lease an auto!
The above items may prove to be a detriment when you wish to move forward with the loan process and or close on your new home.