Tips and Traps When Buying A Home

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Summary: Tips and Traps When Buying a Home
Review: In easy-to-understand language, Irwin has taken much of the stress and uncertainty out of home buying. A companion to Tips and Traps When Selling a Home [BKL Ja 1 90], this book provides the basic knowledge necessary to make buying a home less of a headache for the average person. The author addresses each stage of the buying process from choosing an agent, to negotiating with the seller, to closing the deal. Drawing on 25 years of experience as a real-estate broker, he explains common traps and misconceptions and offers tips on avoiding them--for instance, when the seller might be held liable for concealing defects in the house. This is one of the most accessible and thorough treatments for home buyers available; most public libraries should find it in demand, especially with the spring house-buying season well under way.

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Summary: Informative, Quick Read
Review: Page per page this book probably has more useful information in it then any other real estate book I've read to date.Useful, practical and applicable, the information contained inside can be used for a myriad of areas that you will be involved in when buying your home. The section on "How to Buy a Home" and "How to Make a Low Offer the Seller Will Accept" is worth the price of the book. It is a VERY quick read. Mr Irwin's style is such that you can pick up the meat of what he wants to say in a few sentences or a quick paragraph or two. I bought it a few days ago and I am 80% finished. It'll be done by the time you allread this review.

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Summary: cookie cutter advice
Review: This book gives cookie cutter advice without much elaboration for those of us who don't fit into the mold of "20% down, sterling credit" home-buyers. If you've read any other books then most of the information isn't new and a lot of it is just common sense (although some of it it is outdated now). I would only recommend this book to someone who knows nothing and is ready to read other books in order to put the advice in perspective. If you're going to read anything, read "The 106 Common Mistakes Homebuyers Make". It's a lot better!

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Summary: Very Helpful, Accurate & Easy to Read!
Review: This book has helped me purchase my 1st house! I want to let EVERYONE know that this book was such an informative book that provided very helpful information that my agent & mortgage lender might not be 100% truthtful with me. Therefore, this book was a neutral source of information confirming my suspicion of the seller's intentions for selling their house & other things. Mr. Irwin has written this excellent book that I even recommended to other people in bookstores. He has laid all the aspects of buying a home into a chronological order of the necessary things that you, the buyer, need to know so you will not be mislead by the seller, your agent & other parties involved in one of the biggest & costly transaction that you'll be making in your lifetime! Overall, this book was excellent in my search for my first house & the end result was a beautiful & cozy house in a good neighborhood. But in addition, I also believed that divine intervention was also present, in other words, God was also there watching over me & others involved in this BIG transaction! =)

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Summary: Don't buy your home without it!!!
Review: This is a must have for first time home buyers. Or Even if you have been burned the first time around. This book was very informative and easy to read. I would also reccomend that you buy "The Dictionary of Real Estate Terms". This is a great book to have also. Keep both books close at hand when shopping for a loan. There are tons of loan programs out there. But remember an educated shopper ALWAYS WINS!