Not advising of all options at the beginning of the process. I, thankfully, remembered that we should qualify for a USDA loan and asked about it. That saved us almost $10k that we were able to use on other needed items. Even though it takes more effort, as long as the soon to be homeowner is willing to put forth the effort, that possibility should be considered. And not just USDA, any opportunities that are available to help should be offered. The mortgage company knows about all of these things, the soon to be homeowners usually do not.