100 Questions Every First-Time Home Buyer Should Ask by Glink, Ilyce R. -- Read -- Imperial Library of Trantor

Index

Cover Other Books by This Author Title Page Copyright Dedication Contents Preface Introduction 1: How Do I Know What I Want?

1. Should I Make a Wish List? What About a Reality Check? 2. How Do I Figure Out Where I Want to Live? 3. What Does “Location, Location, Location” Really Mean? 4. How Long Do I Plan to Live in My Future Home? 5. What Are the Different Types of Homes? 6. Should I Buy a New Home or an Existing Home? 7. What Are the Advantages and Disadvantages of Buying a Home That Needs Renovation? What Do Brokers Mean by “Overimproved”? 8. Should My First Home Be an Investment?

2: How Do I Look for a Home?

9. How Do I Start My Search for the Home of My Dreams? Should I Look on the Internet? 10. What Is the Difference Between a Real Estate Agent and a Real Estate Broker? What Is a Realtor? 11. How Do I Choose the Right Agent or Broker? 12. What Is a Seller (or Conventional) Broker? What Are the Seller Broker’s Responsibilities to Me? 13. What Is a Buyer Broker? What Is an Exclusive Buyer’s Agent? Should I Use One? 14. What Is a Dual Agent? What Is a Transactional Broker? What Is a Nonagent? 15. What Is the Typical Real Estate Commission? How Is It Split? 16. What Is a Discount Broker? When Should I Use One? 17. How Much Should My Broker Know About the Amount I Can Afford to Spend on a Home? 18. How Do I Know If My Broker Is Doing a Good Job? 19. How Can I Help in the Search for a Home If I Use a Broker? 20. How Should I Interpret the Home Description in the Local Newspaper or in Broker Listing Sheets? 21. Now That I Can Shop for a Home on the Internet or Buy from a Developer, Do I Need an Agent? Can I Get a Better Deal If I Buy a House Without an Agent? 22. What Do I Need to Know About Buying a House That’s For Sale By Owner (FSBO)?

3: How Do I Identify What I Like and Need in a Home?

23. How Do I Become Selective When Choosing a Home? How Do My Wish List and Reality Check Help Me? 24. When I Go to a Showing, What Should I Look for? 25. How Can I Remember Each Home When I’ve Seen So Many? 26. How Do I Know When It’s Time for a Second Showing? 27. When Do I Know I’ve Found the Right House?

4: How Do I Know What I Can Afford to Spend?

28. How Much Can I Afford? 29. How Much Will It Cost to Own and Maintain a Home? 30. What Are Assessments? Do All Town Houses, Condos, and Co-ops Have Them?

5: Putting Together the Deal

31. How Do I Decide What to Offer for the Home? 32. How Do I Make an Offer? 33. What Goes into the Actual Offer to Purchase or Contract to Purchase? 34. What Is the Earnest Money? Who Holds It? When Do I Get It Back? 35. When I Make an Offer, What Contingencies Should I Include? 36. What Is a Mortgage or Financing Contingency? 37. What Is the Inspection Contingency? 38. What Is the Attorney Approval or Attorney Rider?

6: Negotiating the Deal

39. How Does the Negotiation Process Work? 40. How Do I Make a Counteroffer? 41. What Do I Do in a Multiple-Bid Situation? 42. What Is a Home Warranty? What Kind Can I Get for New Construction? What About a Previously Owned Home? 43. What Does the Contract Really Say and What Are My Obligations Under It? 44. Should I Use a Real Estate Attorney? Should I Sign Anything Before My Attorney Reviews It? 45. How Do I Find a Real Estate Attorney? How Much Should He or She Charge Me? 46. Should I Close at the Beginning, Middle, or End of the Month? Why Does It Matter? 47. What Is Seller Disclosure? How Does It Affect Me? 48. Do I Need a Home Inspection? How Do I Find a Reputable Home Inspector? 49. Should I Test for Toxic Substances and Contaminated Water? 50. What If the Inspector Finds Something Wrong with the Home I Want to Buy? 51. What Do I Do If the Seller or Broker Has Misrepresented the Condition of the Home?

7: Possession and Other Parts of the Offer to Purchase

52. What Is Possession? 53. What if the Seller Wants to Stay in the House after the Closing? 54. When Is the Right Time to Terminate the Contract? How Do I Do it? 55. What Is “Buyer’s Remorse” and How Do I Cope with It?

8: Financing Your Home

56. How Much Can I Afford to Spend on a Home? 57. What Is a Mortgage? 58. How Do I Get Information on Mortgages? 59. What Is the Difference Between a Mortgage Banker and a Mortgage Broker? How Do I Find a Good Lender? Who Are the People Involved with Making the Loan? 60. How Do I Apply for a Loan? Should I Apply Online for a Mortgage? 61. What Kind of Documentation Will I Need for My Application? 62. What Types of Circumstances Might Foul Up My Loan Application? How Can I Fix Them? 63. How Much of a Down Payment Will I Need to Buy My Home? Should I Put Down the Largest or Smallest Down Payment Possible? 64. Should I Borrow from My 401(k) or Other Retirement Accounts to Fund My Down Payment? 65. What Fees Are Associated with a Mortgage Application? What Lender’s Fees Will I Be Charged for My Mortgage? 66. What Are Junk Fees? How Do I Avoid Them? 67. What Is Truth in Lending? 68. What Is the Annual Percentage Rate (APR)? 69. What Is a Good Faith Estimate? 70. What Is a Real Estate Tax Escrow? What Is an Insurance Escrow? How Can I Avoid Setting Them Up? 71. What Should I Do to Make Sure the Mortgage Application Process Goes Smoothly? 72. How Do I Get the Best Loan at the Best Rate on the Best Terms?

9: Playing the Mortgage Game

73. What Are the Different Types of Mortgages Available? How Do I Choose the Right Type for Me? 74. How Small a Down Payment Can I Make? Where Can I Find a Zero-Down Loan? 75. What Is Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI)? How Can I Avoid Paying It? How Do I Get Rid of It? How Does It Differ from FHA’s Mortgage Insurance and Mortgage/Credit Insurance? 76. What Is an Assumable Mortgage? Are These Loans Still Available? 77. What Is a Fixed-Rate Mortgage? What Is an Adjustable-Rate Mortgage (ARM)? 78. What Is a Two-Step Mortgage? What Is a Balloon Mortgage? 79. What Is an FHA Loan? What Is a VA Loan? 80. What Is an Interest-Only Loan? Should I Get One? 81. Should I Automatically Get a Home Equity Loan or Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) When I Close? 82. Are There Other Loan Programs I Should Know About? 83. What Is Seller Financing? What Is a Lease with an Option to Buy? 84. What Loans Exist for Buyers with Mediocre or Poor Credit? Where Do I Get One? 85. What Is a Predatory Lender? How Do I Spot One? 86. Why Are Some Lenders Willing to Give Me a Mortgage for 125 Percent or 130 Percent of the Home’s Sales Price? 87. What If I’m Rejected for My Loan?

10: Before You Close

88. When Should I Schedule My Preclosing Inspection? What Do I Do If I Discover Something Is Damaged or Missing? When Should the Seller Move Out? 89. What Exactly Is the Closing? Where Is It Held? 90. What Are My Closing Costs Likely to Be? 91. What Is a Title Search? What Is Title Insurance? Why Do I Need Them? 92. What Is RESPA? What Does the HUD-1 Statement Look Like? 93. Do I Need Homeowner’s Insurance? What Should It Cover? 94. How Should I Hold Title to My New Home?

11: The Closing

95. Who Should Attend the Closing? What Should I Do If I Can’t Be There? 96. What Are Prorations? 97. What Do I Need to Bring with Me to the Closing? What If Something Goes Wrong at the Closing? 98. What Should I Get from the Sellers at Closing? 99. How Does My Deed Get Recorded? 100. How Should I Prepare for the Move to My New Home?

12: Happily Ever After

Discovering Problems After You Close How to Lighten Your Property Tax Load The Next House: Knowing When It’s Time to Move On

Appendix I: The Top 10 Mistakes First-Time Buyers Make Appendix II: Five Simple Things You Can Do to Make the Home-Buying Process Easier Appendix III: Five Mistakes People Make When Buying New Construction Appendix IV: Contracts Appendix V: General Resources Appendix VI: State-by-State Resource Guide Glossary of Real Estate Terms Every Home Buyer Should Know Alphabetical Listing of Websites Acknowledgments

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