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Title: The Complete Idiot's Guide to Buying and Selling a Home (Complete Idiot's Guide To...) by Shelley O'Hara, Nancy D. Lewis ISBN: 1-59257-120-4 Publisher: Alpha Books Pub. Date: 02 September, 2003 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $18.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.5 (4 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Best home buying primer
Comment: I'm currently in the rush to buy a condo in a seller's-market city, and in the last two weeks I read through a dozen home-buying advice books. The Complete Idiot's Guide is by far the best of the bunch, and in case you are comparison-shopping, I think it's much better than the For Dummies title.
The biggest reason is the book, now in its fourth edition, is very comprehensive. The bulk of it covers the buying aspects, but there are a few chapters devoted to selling, and this is a great arrangement. As a potential buyer, it's to your advantage to know what it's like to sell, so when you select a property you will instinctly think of the time when you need to or have to sell. In my caes, I plan to live in the condo for about 5 years and then move to a different city, so having a seller's perspective while I shop for a condo is really helpful. For instance, I saw a nice condo yesterday which I would have bought but when I considered the selling perspective, I saw some problems and decided not to pursue it. As a home buyer, especially a first-time home buyer like myself (that's why I bought this book!), you really want to make a well-rounded decision. Sure there's no perfect house out there -- unless your definition of "perfect" is imperfect -- but the last thing you want is spend half a million dollars on something you regret right after you sign the closing docs.
Second, compared to many books this one is very well written. Maybe I have a slight bias in favor of female writers, but I find women tend to be better in explaining complicated concepts than men. This book is a perfect example of my stereotype. Every chapter is easy to read and follow, and you see the major points right away. The For Dummies title in particular suffers from information overflow and leaves you wondering what you've just read. Which makes it next to being worthless, especially if you are in a rush to get acquainted with the real estate market. There's a lot of information in this idiot's book but the top-notch organization makes it easy to digest... and remember.
(Don't forget, you don't want to carry a home-buying primer around when you shop for a house! If you did you'd simply be taken for an unpleasant ride by greedy sellers and brokers.)
Third, like I mentioned before, this book also covers aspects of the selling process, so it's a great book to keep in case you need to sell. In addition, when you do sell, you can review the home-buying chapters to learn what motivates the buyer, so to get your best deal!
To be honest at first I didn't like the format of this book; the page is wide and there seem too many words. But because the authors write well and clearly, I eventually found it the best primer on home buying, with bonus coverage on the basic of home selling.
Very highly recommended, especially to previously clueless people like yours truly.
Rating: 5
Summary: 3rd Edition
Comment: I reorganized the information and examples in this book for the 3rd edition and want to point out a few things to potential readers. Because the book just came out in September 2000, note that the two previous reviews are based on the 1st or 2nd editions, not this third revision. Please check out this new edition because it has been reworked to better prepare you to buy or sell a home. You get more information on determining how much home you can afford, understanding your credit, and finding a mortgage broker (to get qualified) before you find your dream home. I truly believe that the first five chapters in this book will help you be better prepared to buy and sell your home and guide you through the rest of the book.
Rating: 3
Summary: Too moderate for me
Comment: Having read "Home Buying for Dummies" by Eric Tyson and Ray Brown which I highly recommend (with five stars) to all the home seekers, now I understand why I'm not really happy with this book. I find this "Idiot's Guide" approach too moderate, lacking in-depth analyses or comments in many areas. (e.g. how to spot ideal locations, etc. ) The author, in my view, doesn't take a stand and states her opinion clearly enough, which sometimes makes me feel like I am reading a free government brochure on home buying A to Z. Perhaps one single volume is not enough to cover such vast and complicated areas as buying and selling homes.
Although I will keep this book and use it as a reference/glossary when necessary, I'd probably rely on Tyson/Brown's book for "tips" most of the time.
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Title: Home Buying for Dummies by Eric Tyson, Ray Brown ISBN: 0764553313 Publisher: For Dummies Pub. Date: 19 January, 2001 List Price(USD): $21.99 |
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Title: 100 Questions Every First-Time Home Buyer Should Ask, Second Edition : With Answers from Top Brokers from Around the Country by Ilyce R. Glink ISBN: 0812932358 Publisher: Three Rivers Press Pub. Date: 31 December, 1999 List Price(USD): $18.00 |
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Title: Mortgages for Dummies by Eric Tyson, Ray Brown ISBN: 0764551477 Publisher: For Dummies Pub. Date: 01 April, 1999 List Price(USD): $16.99 |
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Title: The 106 Common Mistakes Homebuyers Make (and How to Avoid Them), 3rd Edition by Gary W. Eldred ISBN: 0471126586 Publisher: John Wiley & Sons Pub. Date: 18 January, 2002 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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Title: Complete Idiot's Guide to Online Buying and Selling a Home (Complete Idiot's Guide) by Matthew O'Brien, Marty Rodriguez ISBN: 0789722577 Publisher: Alpha Communications Pub. Date: February, 2000 List Price(USD): $16.99 |
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