7. You may not be a good salesperson. How do you develop rapport and properly answer objections? Will your defensiveness scare off a buyer who criticizes your home? Think back to your own purchases. You know a good salesperson makes a difference.

8. A real estate agent handles paperwork. Can you help buyer properly fill out an offer to purchase? Do you have other closing documents ready?

9. Real estate agents negotiate for you. When is last time you learned a new negotiating technique? Do you know how to counter-offer without angering a buyer? A good salesperson is trained in these skills.

10. You may not save a penny. Documents, newspaper advertising, signs for yard, and more - it's all your expense when you sell it yourself. Then after your hard work, you get low offers, and negotiate poorly? The truth is that sellers often net less money from sale when they try to save commission.

You can see why most "FSBO" sellers eventually turn to a real estate agent for help. You can learn to do many of things an agent does, but is it worth it to spend all that time and maybe not even save any money? Don't sell it yourself unless you really know what you're doing, and you're ready for hassle.

Inquire from banks you're choosing between if they offer free checking, what their policy on over-drafting is, how they handle lost/stolen cards, what happens if you have unauthorized charges appear and so on. Talk to them about saving/checking accounts and fees they charge. Get lots of information to take home with you so you can read it throroghly.

Many will have pamphlets to give you, so take all ones that interest you. You will also want to find out how many locations they have and where all their ATM's are. Convenience is key with banks since you won't want to have to drive all over town to withdraw cash or deposit checks. If you're considering a start-up bank that doesn't have too many locations yet- make sure you won't be traveling around much just because you won't have access to a bank.

The best thing you can do when choosing between banks is to get all information you possibly can and then decide which one to go with. This way you'll get best deals and you'll know what to expect and not expect from your banking institution.

Carol Sue Blanchard is passionate about banks and is the webmaster of All About Banks