If you're thinking about building a home, you're probably imagining the fun parts.

Walking through model homes. Picking out your floor plan. Choosing cabinets, flooring, and paint colors. You’re dreaming of having enough space for the kids, a home office, and maybe even that covered patio you've always wanted.

It's exciting.

But before you get caught up in all the design decisions, there are a few things you should know that can save you a lot of money, stress, and regret later.

I've represented several families and helped them navigate the home-building process throughout the Indianapolis area, including Hamilton County and Boone County. I see the same mistakes happen over and over. The good news is they're almost always avoidable.

I’m ending my love affair with gray, all 50-plus shades of it

You know what things are gray? Prisons, concrete, mice, Grandpa’s Buick, skies on a rainy day. Yet, somehow gray has been the most popular interior paint color for the last decade, and like so many others, I painted nearly every wall in my house a shade of gray.

I’m not sure how this gray obsession began, and even when I asked some experts, no one knew for sure. Someone mentioned the home-flipping reality TV duo Chip and Joanna. Someone else pointed a finger at the Kardashians. I don’t know who gets the credit for it, but it’s time we rethink our use of gray. We’ve overdone it.

Talking everything real estate on The Indy Real Estate Gurus podcast

Rick Ripma and Ian Arnold with Mortgage Advisors interviews Realtor Laura Musall on the podcast, Indy Real Estate Gurus. Learn about Laura, what’s it’s like being a realtor, the local market and more.

Here are the 10 cheapest homes sold in the Indianapolis area

Indianapolis Star column by Realtor Laura Musall

It’s fun to ooh and ahh over the ritzy, over-the-top houses that hit the market (like the $5.52 million home that sold in Williams Creek recently), but have you ever wondered about the not so pretty homes? Houses with boarded up windows or signs on the door that say: “Enter at your own risk.” Homes where racoons – and other things – may be running amok. These are the listings that fall into the category of “fixer upper.” Here is a look at the 10 least expensive homes sold over the last 30 days in the Indianapolis Metro area. They range in prices from $30,000 to $52,000.

We don’t just need more houses, we need more of the right kind of houses

A few weeks ago, I showed some houses to a couple from Illinois who want to downsize to a single-story home in Fishers near family. They want a two- or three-bedroom home in a neighborhood where they can play pickleball, be close to hiking trails and grocery stores and meet new friends (and neighbors) who are in the same stage of life.

Sounds pretty simple, right?

It’s not.