“Double-check their interest rates and get their estimates for payments on fixed and adjustable-rate mortgages in writing,” he advises. (Compare rates at bankrate.com and lendingtree.com.) An adjustable begins with a low payment that increases at set intervals based on projected federal interest-rate changes, and lending institutions should advise you on both the initial and fully indexed rates.

Hire a Realtor who actually listens
“Talk to potential agents before you go out looking and make sure they’re hearing what you’re saying about your preferences, so they can guide you to the best of what’s in your price range,” says Realtor Staci Slattery of North Clybourn Group.

A good Realtor should be versed on neighborhood trends, familiar with new-construction builders and their quality of work, and knowledgeable about property values.

“You want someone who’s going to save you money,” Slattery says. “Someone who can tell you, when you’ve fallen in love with a place, that if you buy at this price, you’re paying $60,000 too much.”

To find such a gem of a Realtor, Slattery suggests getting recommendations from friends and perusing for-sale signs in your favorite neighborhoods to see who’s successfully doing a lot of business in those areas.

Additionally, insiderpages.com offers consumer reviews of local real-estate agents.

Verify that your inspector is licensed and insured
Once you’ve found your dream domicile and your offer’s been accepted, hire an inspector to check out the place and identify problems so you can negotiate with the seller to fix them before the closing. Michael Hughes of Northwood Property Inspection recommends checking with the American Society of Home Inspectors (ashi.com) for a list of licensed, insured inspectors. Your real-estate agent can make recommendations, and you also can read reviews of local inspectors at Yahoo’s “building inspection” section (local.yahoo.com).

Make sure your lawyer understands real estate
This seems like a no-brainer, right? Surely you wouldn’t hire the same lawyer who handled your car accident or your roommate’s divorce. But many do. “I was at a closing where the attorney didn’t even understand the documents and charged the client $900,” says local attorney Joanne Gleason, adding that while she’s seen flyers advertising a $290 closing package, you should expect to pay between $450 and $750 for thorough service.

You’ll need an attorney to review the contract, mortgage and condo-association documents, ensure that the property is free of liens, negotiate home-inspection issues and attend the closing. While Illinois lawyers can’t legally advertise a specialty, you can get recommendations from your Realtor, call a firm and ask what percentage of their practice is devoted to real estate, or check listings in the “real estate law” section at lawyers.findlaw.com.

Kicking the tires
The only thing more important than a knowledgeable crew working for you? Finding a home you love. Here’s how:

Don’t be afraid to crank faucets and inspect windows
Test the infrastructure, advises Michelle Teague, a home inspector for five years. “Turn on the water in the kitchen and the bathroom at the same time. If the water pressure is low, that building might have old plumbing,” she says. “With windows, when the ThermaSeal is compromised—in other words, when double-pane windows look foggy in the middle—usually those need to be replaced. That’s a major expense.” Also, check for water damage, a problem Teague says crops up in new construction and gut rehabs. “The most common place [to find water damage] is around window frames and door frames,” she notes. “Look for any brown stains. If you come across a leak, get a good explanation of what caused it.”

High ceilings add drama. So do high heating bills
“If you’ve got really high ceilings, it’s important to know you’ll have a lot of heat hanging out up there,” Teague notes. “Ceiling fans can help push some of that air back down in the wintertime.”

Hot tubs aren’t that hot in the long run
“Whirlpools and steam showers pose cleaning challenges,” Teague says. “Also—and I’ve seen this a lot—the high humidity of steam showers can cause problems with grout or bathroom light fixtures. If they have the wrong kind of grout in their shower stalls, the grout can fail and the tiles come loose; or the light fixtures get corroded.”

Cover some ground
What’s better: hardwood floors or carpeting? “It depends on your lifestyle,” Teague says. But she offers a caveat about bare floors: “Hardwood flooring does not always mean old-fashioned, tongue-and-groove flooring. A lot of new, poor-quality, engineered floors have only a veneer of hardwood. Good hardwood flooring is wonderful, but I’m seeing more and more engineered floors, which don’t wear very well. Get a good answer from the seller about what kind of floor they have. Carpet’s great, but it can be hard for people with allergies. If you have the option, choose hardwood floors, which will certainly bring up the resale value. You can always add area rugs.”

Brick beats cinder block
“If you’re buying something new, a building that has brick on all four sides is worth its weight in gold,” Teague says. “Those buildings with brick in front and concrete block on the surrounding sides can be very problematic, and people probably don’t realize what a big difference it makes. There are lots of [water] leaking problems with cinder-block buildings.”