| Introduction |
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2 | (1) |
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The Basics of Buying a Good House |
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2 | (1) |
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A Place to Live for Almost Everyone |
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3 | (1) |
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4 | (1) |
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5 | |
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Describe Your Dream House |
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You Know the House You Want to Buy |
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2 | (1) |
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Don't Be Talked Into Buying the Wrong House |
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3 | (1) |
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Identify Your Ideal House Profile |
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3 | (3) |
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Create a House Priorities Worksheet |
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6 | (2) |
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Prepare a House Comparison Worksheet |
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8 | |
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How Much House Can You Afford? |
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The Basics of Determining Housing Affordability |
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2 | (2) |
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Prepare a Family Financial Statement |
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4 | (5) |
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How Much Down Payment Will You Make? |
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9 | (1) |
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Estimate the Mortgage Interest Rate You'll Likely Pay |
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10 | (1) |
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Calculate How Much House You Can Afford |
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10 | (3) |
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Tips on Improving Your Financial Statement |
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13 | (5) |
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18 | |
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Narrowing the Affordability Gap: How to Afford Buying a House |
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Why California Houses Are Expensive |
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2 | (1) |
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Don't Buy a House at All---Rent and Invest Elsewhere |
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3 | (1) |
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Fix Up the House You Already Own |
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4 | (1) |
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Strategies for Buying an Affordable House |
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5 | |
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Raising Money for Your Down Payment |
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No and Low Down Payment Plans |
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3 | (1) |
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Five Percent and Ten Percent Down Payment Mortgages |
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3 | (1) |
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Private Mortgage Insurance |
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3 | (3) |
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How Much Should Your Down Payment Be? |
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6 | (2) |
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Using Equity in an Existing House as a Down Payment on a New One |
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8 | (1) |
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Using a Gift to Help With the Down Payment |
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8 | (2) |
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Borrowing Down Payment Money From a Relative or Friend |
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10 | (1) |
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Is It a Gift or Loan? Sometimes It Pays to Be Vague |
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11 | (1) |
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Borrowing From Your 401(k) Plan |
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11 | (1) |
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11 | (1) |
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12 | (1) |
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Substituting a Second Mortgage for a Down Payment |
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12 | (1) |
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Secure Your Loan Using Stock as Collateral |
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13 | |
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Working With Real Estate Professionals |
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Pros and Cons of Working With a Real Estate Professional |
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2 | (4) |
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Work With a Real Estate Professional Paid by the Seller |
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6 | (3) |
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Hire a Buyer's Broker and Pay the Commission |
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9 | (2) |
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Hire a Broker by the Hour |
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11 | (1) |
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Buy a House Yourself With No Professional Help |
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12 | (1) |
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12 | (5) |
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17 | (1) |
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Getting Rid of a Broker or Agent You Don't Like |
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18 | |
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The Best Time to Look for Houses |
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3 | (1) |
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3 | (1) |
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4 | (1) |
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Work With a Real Estate Salesperson |
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5 | (1) |
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Gain Access to the Multiple Listing Service |
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5 | (1) |
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How to Access Homes for Sale on the Internet |
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6 | (1) |
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How Your Real Estate Agent Can Use a Computer to Help You Find a House |
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7 | (1) |
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Enlist the Help of Personal Contacts |
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7 | (1) |
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Do Your Own House Scouting |
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8 | (2) |
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Enlist More Than One Agent to Help You Search |
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10 | (1) |
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Find Foreclosures, Probate Sales and Lease Option Properties |
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11 | (1) |
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11 | (1) |
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Finding a House When You're New to an Area |
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11 | (1) |
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Online Help With Community and Neighborhood Information |
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12 | (1) |
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12 | |
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New Houses, developments and Condominiums |
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Pitfalls and Pluses of Buying a New House |
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2 | (1) |
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Choose the Developer, Then the House |
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3 | (1) |
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Using a Real Estate Agent or Broker |
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4 | (1) |
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5 | (2) |
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Optional Add-Ons and Upgrades |
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7 | (2) |
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9 | (2) |
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Restrictions on the Use of Your Property: CC&Rs |
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11 | (4) |
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15 | (1) |
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Inspect the House Before Closing |
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15 | (3) |
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Guarantees and Warranties |
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18 | |
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Financing Your House: An Overview |
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How Mortgage Lenders Think |
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2 | (1) |
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Who Lends Mortgage Money? |
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2 | (1) |
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Standardized Loans---Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Secondary Mortgage Market |
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3 | (1) |
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3 | (1) |
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Comparing Fixed Rate and Adjustable Rate Mortgages |
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4 | (2) |
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Finding the Least Costly Mortgage---Points, Interest Rates and Other Lender Fees |
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6 | (2) |
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What Mortgage Is Best for You? |
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8 | |
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Should You Choose a Fixed Rate Mortgage If You Can Afford One? |
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2 | (1) |
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Not All Fixed Rate Mortgages Are the Same---Down Payments, Points, Interest Rates and Other Variables |
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3 | (2) |
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Avoid Mortgages With Prepayment Penalties |
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5 | (1) |
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Fixed Rate Mortgages' Lengths and Payment Schedules |
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5 | (2) |
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Most Fixed Rate Loans Aren't Assumable |
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7 | (1) |
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Short-Term Fixed Rate Mortgages With Balloon Payments |
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7 | (1) |
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8 | (1) |
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Buydown Mortgages---The Seller Subsidizes Your Payments |
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8 | |
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Adjustable Rate Mortgages |
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Are ARMs a Decent Consumer Choice? |
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2 | (2) |
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4 | (1) |
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4 | (2) |
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6 | (1) |
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6 | (1) |
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7 | (1) |
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Hybrid Adjustable Rate Mortgage |
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7 | (1) |
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Summing Up---What Good ARMs Look Like |
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7 | |
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Government-Assisted Loans |
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2 | (2) |
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Federal Housing Administration Financing |
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4 | (2) |
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California Housing Finance Agency Programs |
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6 | (1) |
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7 | (2) |
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Municipal Financing Programs |
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9 | |
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Get a Loan From Friends or Relatives |
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2 | (4) |
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Shared Equity Transactions |
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6 | (1) |
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Second Mortgages---Financing by Sellers |
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6 | (2) |
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Second Mortgages---Financing by Private Parties Other Than the Seller |
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8 | |
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Gather Information on Mortgage Rates and Fees |
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2 | (1) |
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Researching Mortgages Online |
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3 | (1) |
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4 | (1) |
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5 | (1) |
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Complete the Mortgage Rates and Terms Table |
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6 | (5) |
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11 | (2) |
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13 | |
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Buying a House When You Already Own One |
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Check the Housing Market Carefully |
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2 | (4) |
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Bridge Financing: How to Own Two Houses Briefly |
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6 | (1) |
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Tax Breaks for Selling Your Home |
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7 | |
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2 | (1) |
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Decide How Much You Will Offer |
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2 | (1) |
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What Is the Advertised Price? |
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2 | (1) |
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3 | (1) |
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What Are Prices of Comparable Houses? |
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3 | (2) |
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Is the Local Real Estate Market Hot or Cold? |
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5 | (2) |
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Is the House Itself Hot or Cold? |
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7 | (1) |
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What Are the Seller's Needs? |
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8 | (1) |
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Is the House Uniquely Valuable to You? |
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9 | (1) |
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How Much Are You Willing to Pay? |
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9 | (1) |
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Making the Final Decision |
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10 | |
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Putting Your Offer in Writing |
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What Makes an Offer Legally Valid? |
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2 | (1) |
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2 | (1) |
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How to Fill Out the Contract to Purchase Real Property Form |
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3 | |
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Presenting Your Offer and Negotiating |
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State Your Intent to Make an Offer |
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2 | (1) |
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3 | (1) |
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Bid on Two or More Houses |
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4 | (1) |
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4 | (3) |
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The Seller's Response to Your Offer |
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7 | (6) |
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Negotiate by Counteroffers |
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13 | (1) |
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An Offer Is Accepted-A Contract Is Formed |
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14 | (1) |
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Revoking an Offer or Counteroffer |
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14 | (1) |
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14 | |
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After the Contract Is Signed: Escrow, Contingencies and Title Insurance |
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2 | (3) |
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5 | (6) |
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11 | (3) |
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Obtain Title Report and Title Insurance |
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14 | (1) |
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Conduct Final Physical Inspection of Property |
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15 | (1) |
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16 | |
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Check Out a House's Condition |
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Short History of California House Inspections |
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2 | (1) |
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Real Estate Transfer Disclosure Statement |
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2 | (7) |
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Natural Hazard Disclosure Statement |
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9 | (1) |
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Earthquake and Seismic Disclosures |
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9 | (2) |
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11 | (1) |
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11 | (1) |
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Disclosure of Deaths and/or AIDS |
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12 | (1) |
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Disclosure of Military Ordnance |
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12 | (1) |
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13 | (1) |
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Inspecting the Property Yourself |
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13 | (1) |
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Arranging Professional Inspections |
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14 | (6) |
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Are the Repairs Really Needed? |
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20 | (1) |
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21 | (1) |
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21 | |
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Legal Ownership: How to Take Title |
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2 | (1) |
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Two or More Unmarried People |
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2 | (2) |
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Married Couple Owning Together |
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4 | (3) |
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Married Person Owning Alone |
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7 | (1) |
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8 | (1) |
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Placing the Property in a Living Trust |
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8 | |
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If Something Goes Wrong During Escrow |
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2 | (1) |
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The Seller Refuses to Move Out |
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2 | (1) |
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3 | (1) |
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3 | (1) |
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You Discover a Defect in the Property |
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3 | (1) |
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The House Is Destroyed by Natural Disaster (Fire, Earthquake, Flood) |
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4 | (1) |
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House-Hungry Martians Take Possession of the House |
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4 | (1) |
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4 | |
Other versions by this Author