You'll pay an early withdrawal penalty if you take money from a CD early, but if you use the money to pay down your mortgage, you'd need to refinance or get a home equity loan to access that cash ...

Another valid reason to increase the amount of cash you have on hand and consider only using banks when absolutely necessary, ...

Others said the only way to get a good deal was to pretend to finance, agree on a price, and then pay in full. In other words, never admit you're paying cash until it's time to sign.