Rating: Summary: balanced advice with real-world examples Review: I've read a few books on home-buying recently and this one was the most helpful by far! Don't go into closing without it!!!
Rating: Summary: balanced advice with real-world examples Review: I've read a few books on home-buying recently and this one was the most helpful by far! Don't go into closing without it!!!
Rating: Summary: Saved me from a wrong location Review: Just as I was about to buy a home near Camp Pendleton, California, I fortunately bought and read this book. I was all set to make an offer when the book advised me to look at the house at various times and days. Previously, I had only looked on weekends. QUIET, great! But when I visited the house at 2:00 p.m. on a Wed., it sounded like an invasion was about to take place--a constant stream of helicopters were flying overhead. And, I later learned this is usual every week day, throughout the day. If you want to make sure your not overlooking something that could prove just as disasterous for you, read this book. I couldn't believe all of the ways these mistakes mentioned in the book opened my eyes to so many things I hadn't even thought of.
Rating: Summary: False mortgage lock Review: Last October(2001), we had locked in a rate at rock bottom (6.25%) for 30 days. Rates started to climb and our mortgage broker began dragging her feet. Almost each day, we got a new request for more documents, verifications, or explanations. But when we got almost ready to close on the 28th day, the broker told us the sellers (or we) would have to make a $117 plumbing repair before we could settle. Of course, that delay would cost us our lock and we would be forced to take a new rate of around 7.0%. Fortunately, because we had read this book, we strongly suspected what was really happening. We were about to become victims of a false rate lock. But we knew what to do. We raised holy heck. We threatened complaints with every regulatory agency that even remotely was concerned with mortgages. We got our 6.25%. But if we hadn't been warned ahead of time by 106 Mistakes, we would probably have just capitulated. We wouldn't have known any better. So, this book saved us big bucks.
Rating: Summary: Wins Our Vote Review: Our homebuyer's club voted this the best overall book on homebuying among all the ones we read and discussed for three reasons: (1) It was the most interesting and enjoyable to read, (2)it covers mortgage shopping(especially tricks of the trade )better than other homebuying books, and (3)nearly everyone in our group of 12 "cautious" shoppers knew (or knew of) someone who had made mistakes similar to those told about in the book--so we judged this guide to be the most real world helpful.
Rating: Summary: Great practical examples Review: The book uses many real examples to tell the reader potential mistakes buyers often make. The stories are vivid and easy to remember. But the book does not bother to explain some basic concepts in home buying, which often is a problem for first-time buyers. This can be solved by having another book like Home Buying for Dummies as a reference. But the Dummies book is dry and not enough. Every time you want to buy a house (first, second, ...), you should read this book to refresh your memory about what can go wrong in the buying process.
Rating: Summary: Read this book before buying a house. Review: The book uses many real examples to tell the reader potential mistakes buyers often make. The stories are vivid and easy to remember. But the book does not bother to explain some basic concepts in home buying, which often is a problem for first-time buyers. This can be solved by having another book like Home Buying for Dummies as a reference. But the Dummies book is dry and not enough. Every time you want to buy a house (first, second, ...), you should read this book to refresh your memory about what can go wrong in the buying process.
Rating: Summary: Absolutely, positively an indispensable book for FTHBs! Review: This book is absolutely, positively an indispensable book for First Time Home Buyers! I started my homesearch prior to doing any research on the process. I smartened up and bought this book along with Homebuying for Dummies. I read this one first and was amazed at how much I learned. It prepared me immensely for the very intimidating process of buying your first home. EVERYONE should read this book prior to even selecting a realtor(and I even know now that having your own realtor is not even necessary!)The second book, Homebuying for Dummies, after reading "106..." seemed a bit too simplistic(a testimonial to how thorough "106..." is). It was good as a reference for more in-depth discussion of issues raised in "106...", but I skipped over a lot of the subject matter as I read because it had already been sufficiently addressed in the first book. So, don't even hit the pavement driving around looking at neighborhoods until you buy "106..."!
Rating: Summary: Excellent for First-Time Buyers Review: This book is excellent for first-time buyers. It also is a good refresher for other buyers (we are in our third home). Good easy-to-read tips that are up-to-date. Better than any magazines for getting your money's worth.
Rating: Summary: YES! Very helpful book. Review: This book is very helpful. Easy to read. You won't be disappointed. Great for first time (or second time) home buyers. Great example stories. Gives you advice. A valuable purchase. I'm glad I read it before going out to view homes. I would recommend it to anyone buying a home. Buy it used to save a few bucks.
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