Even veteran escrow officers can get confused about buyer and seller prorations, especially if they're rushing to complete closing statements. So, if you get confused about prorations, don't feel like you're alone in that confusion.

An escrow officer made a mistake at a closing which, for those of you not in California, means the buyers are signing loan documents and depositing funds into an escrow in hopes that the deed and trust deed will record a few days later, resulting in an actual closing. The escrow officer worked overtime the night before putting together the closing statement, and she e-mailed it to me. I noticed that she charged the buyers for six months of property taxes and then credited an amount for the period of time they would occupy the property. On the surface, it sounds feasible, but that's not the way it works, especially when property taxes aren't yet due and payable.

It was backwards.

In an attempt to rectify the situation, I e-mailed the escrow officer, asking why wasn't she charging the sellers' account and then charging the buyers for their occupancy period. She replied that her calculations were correct, a position she continued to hold when we met at closing the following morning.

I have patience. So, my buyers and I waited while the escrow officer disappeared into another room to discuss the situation with her boss. She didn't come back, but the right prorations finally appeared on a new closing statement . . . read more about prorations.

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One of these days, you're probably going to find yourself locked out of the house.

But getting locked out can happen to anybody, even to real estate agents. An agent called me a few months ago to say he had lost the key to one of my vacant listings. He removed the key from the lockbox and somehow misplaced it. My seller lived out of state, and I didn't have a spare key.

After verifying that I was authorized to represent the seller, a locksmith showed up and charged that agent $125 to make a new key . . . read more about Locked Out of the House.

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It's not unusual for home owners to toy with the idea of home downsizing, because a smaller mortgage payment holds a lot of appeal, but that's not the only reason to downsize.

In fact, I've downsized my home several times in my life. My first house was simply too big for me. I had an entire wing I never entered. It was too large to clean by myself, so I hired a series of housekeepers who were all disasters. One maid had arms so huge that she often crushed my cans of Comet cleanser from her brute strength. If that wasn't bad enough, I came home early one day to find her vacuuming the floor without plugging in the vacuum cleaner.

Needless to say, I was happy to sell that home and move into a more practical home for one-quarter of my former mortgage payment. But there are many other advantages, and some disadvantages, to downsizing your home . . . read more about Home Downsizing.

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You expect to find homes with outdoor kitchens in warm climates, but some home buyers in the snow country want outdoor kitchens, too, even though they may use it only a few months out of the year.

Now, ordinarily it would be fabulous if a home with an outdoor kitchen would cost the same as a home without one, but the inclusion does add to the bottom-line value of a home. The trick is to figure out how much this amenity increases the sales price over a similar home without an outdoor kitchen, as well as comparing it to a home with a less expensive outdoor entertainment design. The retail cost, for example, of grill islands, varies wildly and depends on brand name, type of installation and configuration. Not to mention, appliances depreciate in value as they age.

Before you buy a home with an outdoor kitchen, make a list of what's included and get everything inspected. Ask for warranties on the appliances, too. . . . read more about Outdoor Kitchens.

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