Home Buying for Dummies

by Eric Tyson, Ray Brown

A great book on Home Buying.

Genres: Nonfiction, Reference, Finance, Self Help, Money, How To, Business

387 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2006

Reviews

[Lobstergirl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Homebuying really depends on your particular market. Some markets are unique (New York City, for example). Buying a condo is fairly different from buying a single family house. Obtaining a mortgage, I hear, is quite a bit different today than it was before the financial meltdown. Real estate laws differ by state. So whatever general, all-purpose book you read, if you're a first time buyer, is never going to tell you everything you need to know. But if you are buying for the first time, or buying after a long period of living in the same house, you should certainly read some book like this. I found this book less helpful than 100 Questions Every First-Time Home Buyer Should Ask: With Answers from Top Brokers from Around the Country.

[Meredith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Since we've bought a house, I guess I'm finished reading this book.

I learned some good things from this book, but I think it was aimed at someone looking to buy their dream home that they plan to live in forever. Paul and I were looking to buy our first home, and we would have been happy with any number of different homes as long as they met our price, space, and functional requirements; we weren't planning on spending months and months looking at every house on the market.

One thing in particular that was weird about this book was their advice on finding a realtor, and then what a realtor should be doing for you. They said you should interview multiple realtors and then call people the realtors had worked with over the last year as references. Once that arduous process was complete, we were instructed to expect our realtor to visit all the houses we were interested in without us, take additional pictures of her own, and then only show us the best houses. That might make sense if we were looking for our very specific dream home and planned to spend a quarter million or more, because then 3% of the purchase price might have made all that worth her while. But 3% of the lower-end price range we were aiming for hardly buys us that level of single-minded work from our realtor. She's done a very good job, and we are getting a great house at a great price that exceeds our expectations in all the important categories.

I'm going to put this one on amazon.com for resale; buy it used or else check it out of the library. This one is worth a skim, but not a dedicated read-through.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good resource if you are a first time homebuyer, and some good tips and things to remember even if you aren't.

Top take aways:

Take the emotions out of it. There are plenty of other homes to choose from.

Find a good agent that knows what they are doing and is not just looking for a quick sale. Sometimes they will show you 3 houses they know you won't like, and they 4th one they want to steer you into (it will look much better buy comparision). It is the 5th one that they don't show you that maybe they won't get as much commission on that you really want to get. I don't think the book said this in so many words.

Negotiate but don't waste peoples time. If you are going to offer less than asking price you should have a good reason (other houses in the neighborhood, repairs needed).

Don't buy what you can't afford. Too bad nobody read this before the sub prime mess.

[lunarlibrarian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not a natural-born non-fiction reader, but let me tell you, this book was a page-turner and I devoured it. Very helpful. A GREAT resource for home-buying.

[Alissa Thorne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick read covering the things you likely need to know when buying a home.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this book deserves 4 stars. It explains big and small aspects of purchasing a home in language I could understand. We'll see how well it prepared me once I put the knowledge to the test!

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very useful tips for the first-time homebuyer!

[Elwin Kline · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent, 'one size fits most', home buying book.

Not too heavy, but enough to walk away feeling satisfied. For newbies/first time home buyers, definitely a worthy time investment as you walk towards your first.

For more experienced folks, this is decent supplemental reading and a worthwhile refresher to burn through quickly and freshen up on a few things here and there.

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm in the market - meaning I'm very receptive to their advice, but I'm also a real estate lawyer, meaning it feels a little basic to me.

However, even I, conceited as I am, learned a thing or two reading this book. I don't like the mildly pro-suburban viewpoint. I don't like how much they trust a realtor to competently help a home buyer. But most of this book seems like solid advice.

[Alexis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy to understand. Provides detailed overview through each step of the process. Able to take information and apply to my own search in real time.

[Bryan Whitehead · Rating 5 out of 5]

Normally I avoid books with titles that insult readers. However, I’m forced to admit that when it comes to this particular topic I really do qualify as a dummy. I can’t feature that anyone who wasn’t buying a house for the first time would have much interest in this book, but for those of us at that point in our lives it really is a valuable resource. If nothing else, the authors at least manage to take some mystery out of the whole process, spelling out the stages of home buying in easy to understand language. In many ways, reading Home Buying for Dummies while on the path to home ownership is like having someone there to hold your hand and tell you that all the weird, new things that are going on in your life are the normal, ordinary stuff that millions of other people have already endured. I must confess that I have no interest in condos, real estate as an investment, or selling, so I didn’t read the sections on those subjects. But the rest of the book was well worth the price.

[Krista · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very clear, understandable, and readable book on buying a home. I keep returning to it to look up things I don't understand, and it's always explained clearly. This book complements "10 Steps to Buying a Home for First-Time Buyers" very well; "HBFD" focuses mostly on the practical while "10 Steps" discusses the emotional issues of buying a home and goes into far greater detail on how to identify what you want. "10 Steps" reads a little bit like having your mother's voice in your ear cautioning you to never, ever buy a house without 20 percent down or you will FAIL at life.
"HBFD" takes a more realistic approach and is honest, with statements about how most homeowners will wipe out most of their savings for the downpayment, etc. I've found enough differences between the two to be glad I have both.

[Lynsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent book that takes you through the homebuying process from the decision to buy through your first steps after taking ownership. I would have liked to see more about the differences in negotiating the prices of existing homes versus new construction in a subdivision -- can I even negotiate in these situations? I'm still not sure, but that wasn't an option I was considering when I purchased the book, so I'm not sure I can fault the book for not including that information. Overall, the best part of this book is simply the wealth of information. I feel confident that I can find a good home within my budget after reading this book, whereas before, I was pretty much terrified to even start looking.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I listened to this book on CD--a great way to let all the previously confusing notions of home buying simply wash over "one." I've also listened to TIPS & TRAPS WHEN BUYING A HOME/Irwin (really good) and THE AUTOMATIC MILLIONAIRE HOMEOWNER/Bach (the first disc is prattle, but there are some decent tips in the next few). Also trying to make it through GUERRILLA NEGOTIATING/Levinson (pretty boring). And, now, I'm listening faithfully to MORTGAGES FOR DUMMIES/Tyson (very similar to HOME BUYING F.D.). Anyway, I've got some time before I can afford a home, so I'm gradually becoming an expert...

[kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

i bought this years ago when i first considered buying a house, and while the info is a bit outdated for the current house buying climate (i.e. entire sections about arms and 0% down mortgages can be skipped because they don't exist anymore), i felt it really gave me a firm handle on the life decision i was about to make. in my case it pushed me off the fence and let me know i really was ready, but for some folks it may be a needed reality check that they still have a good deal of preparation to do. i'll also admit i didn't finish the book; i should have read it BEFORE trying to buy a house and not during so i could stay ahead of the process.

[Filippo Pacifici · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good parts:
- a ton of useful information. The book covers everything from finding a house, hiring an agent, finding a loan, etc.
- language. The book exposes technical subject in a simple and understandable way
- pragmatic. The book focuses on practical elements and provides useful pointers to go deeper in each subject

Bad parts:
- Chronology. The structure is not very consistent. By the end it is not clear what which things have to happen in which order, which I would expect from such a book.

[Kristyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Phew! The book must have worked, because we got through the home buying process without any major hang-ups, worked with good people, and got a wonderful house. I think it's really important to read a book about buying a house before you make such a big purchase. This one is a good choice. The authors did a good job explaining everything you need to do, and watch out for, and they do it in language that no one should have problems comprehending.

[Stephanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had to move this from my "reading" shelf to my "read" shelf simply because it was due to go back to the library. I read more than half of it, and it's really a reference book anyway. I thought it was okay. It's easy to read and there is a lot of nice basic/common knowledge information in it. I don't know if I "learned" anything, but there were some helpful lists. It's not bad, but I probably won't ever reference it.

[Meg · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did NOT finish this book.

I grabbed it off a shelf a couple of years ago because ONE DAY, I would like to buy a house. After reading the first two chapters, I realized that I am not financially ready to buy a house. :) First I need to finish paying off my school loans and random debt. That is my goal for the year----once I finish that, then I will continue reading this book.

Well-written, easy to understand.....and inspiration to put my budget in order.

[Pamela Hubbard · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is meant for people who know little or nothing about the home buying process. It is extremely thorough, covering everything from mortgages to escrow, insurance to how to shop for an agent and inspector. Terms are defined simply so that the book is not overwhelming. I took a lot of notes and learned a lot. Some sections I skimmed because I had already done some research and talked to a lot of people who have purchased houses. I do recommend that first time homebuyers read this!

[Christopher Petrillo]

Good but a bit outdated (understandable for an older edition book). While the book addressed buying a home for homeowners, I got the feeling the authors are speculative real estate investors and that type of strategy permeated their writing. Not in a bad way, if you can take their advice with a grain of salt, but it definitely seemed to be catered a bit towards the investor instead of the future homeowner.

[James Holt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Though the 2009 edition is a little out-dated now, I still took a lot away from this read. I knew nothing about the home-buying process when I started. But I took extensive notes as I read, and I went into the process feeling confident. One loan officer I spoke with even said I seemed too savvy to be a first-timer. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to know what's up as they buy their first home.

[Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very practical & informative book if you're looking to buy a home. Easy to read, easy to understand. Even if you read only a few chapters, it may end up saving you thousands of dollars. Even our realtor was impressed with the knowledge we'd gained & said it was spot-on.
If you're buying a home, READ THIS BOOK!

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very helpful book, written plainly enough to be understood by those of us not overly familiar with "fixed vs. adjustable rate" and the like, but not dumbed down to the point of being insulting. I feel better prepared to face the real estate market head on, and I now know never to close escrow on a Monday. Thanks, Dummies authors.

[Jennie · Rating 5 out of 5]

We've been renting for nearly 8 years, and I read this to feel like I sort of know what I'm doing if we take the leap and buy a house in the next year or two (?). The info was so good I took notes, and I feel much more confident with the whole process now. I highly recommend the book to any potential buyers.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

What I learned......uhhhhh......everything. Takes you step-by-step through the home buying process and prepares you for just about everything. It takes you from budgeting all the way to the closing table. I felt informed and knowledgeable heading into every situation and I'd recommend this book to anyone considering their first home purchase.

[Aaron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Found this very useful. They did spend an awful lot of time in the first part of the book talking about things that don't apply to me, but I can see how they'd be useful for many other people. I wish I'd read the part on "picking a realtor" before I picked one -- I would have been much better off!

My first cover-to-cover Dummies book.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

For the record, someone went to the library to pick up the non-judgmentally-titled Nolo book on buying a home in California and brought me home this instead. But this book ended up really meeting my needs--it lays out everything you could ever want to know and provides easily applied rules of thumb, helping you navigate what is often an unruly and confusing process.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

I closed on my house yesterday so I think I can recommend this one. :) The Dummies series has always been a lot better than the stupid name would seem to indicate and this is no exception. It's a lot of common sense (and experience of course) but it's wrapped up in a good package that will guide you through the process and reassure that you know what you're doing.

[Hom Sack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! Somethings have changed since the last 18 to 34 years in the process of buying a house. It is good to be brought updated by this book. Next on the list to read is the sequel House Selling For Dummies, 3rd edition.