Read more
* Negotiate a great price
* Find your best mortgage
* Discover applications and checklists online
Get the Best Deal on Your New Home!
When it comes to buying a home, it's hard to know where to begin. You want to buy at a fair price at the right time-not always easy in a fast-changing market. The updated Home Buying Kit has all you need: strategies to secure the optimal deal, the ins and outs of home financing, how to evaluate rent vs. buy, and the latest on regulations around mortgage interest and property tax. Whether a first-time buyer or veteran homeowner, this book will help you make the smart decisions that move you into your dream home in no time!
Inside...
* Get your finances in order
* Improve your credit score
* Choose the right mortgage
* Build your real estate team
* Maximize your financial health
* Inspect and protect your home
* Understand and minimize closing costs
List of contents
Introduction 1
Part 1: Getting Started with Buying a Home 5
Chapter 1: Deciding Whether to Buy 7
Chapter 2: Getting Your Financial House in Order 21
Chapter 3: What Can You Afford to Buy? 37
Chapter 4: Why Home Prices Rise and Fall 67
Part 2: Financing 101 81
Chapter 5: Understanding and Improving Your Credit Score 83
Chapter 6: Selecting a Mortgage 99
Chapter 7: Mortgage Quandaries, Conundrums, and Forms 129
Part 3: Property, Players, and Prices 155
Chapter 8: Where and What to Buy 157
Chapter 9: Assembling an All-Star Real Estate Team 197
Chapter 10: What's It Worth? 227
Chapter 11: Tapping the Internet's Best Resources 247
Part 4: Making the Deal 257
Chapter 12: Negotiating Your Best Deal 259
Chapter 13: Inspecting and Protecting Your Home 287
Chapter 14: It Ain't Over till the Weight-Challenged Escrow Officer Sings 309
Part 5: The Part of Tens 325
Chapter 15: Ten Financial "To Do's" After You Buy 327
Chapter 16: Ten Things to Know When Investing in Real Estate 335
Chapter 17: Ten Things to Consider When Selling Your House 343
Part 6: Appendixes 351
Appendix A: Sample Real Estate Purchase Contract 353
Appendix B: Sample Short-Sale Addendum plus Short-Sale Information and Advisory 365
Appendix C: Example of a Good Inspection Report 373
Appendix D: Glossary 393
Index 411
About the author
Eric Tyson is a personal finance writer, lecturer, and former management consultant to Fortune 500 financial service firms.
Ray Brown is a real estate professional with over four decades of hands-on experience and a public speaker on residential real estate topics.
Summary
* Negotiate a great price
* Find your best mortgage
* Discover applications and checklists online
Get the Best Deal on Your New Home!
When it comes to buying a home, it's hard to know where to begin. You want to buy at a fair price at the right time-not always easy in a fast-changing market. The updated Home Buying Kit has all you need: strategies to secure the optimal deal, the ins and outs of home financing, how to evaluate rent vs. buy, and the latest on regulations around mortgage interest and property tax. Whether a first-time buyer or veteran homeowner, this book will help you make the smart decisions that move you into your dream home in no time!
Inside...
* Get your finances in order
* Improve your credit score
* Choose the right mortgage
* Build your real estate team
* Maximize your financial health
* Inspect and protect your home
* Understand and minimize closing costs
