Budgets.  Aren’t they great?

But without them, the bills don’t get paid.  And that includes the mortgage.

Read a good piece by Dan Green last week – it reminded me that when shopping for a home, it’s important to determine what your budget can afford first.

When you buy a home, you should search by cost, not price. After all, cost is what you pay monthly. It’s your mortgage, your taxes, your insurance, and assessments. It’s your costs of homeownership and maintenance.

Start with the budget, and arrive at the price … not the other way around. Also don’t forget to add other costs to your budget, for example janitorial service oaklandjanitorial.com.