Buying Your Home
- How to Buy
- Appraisals & Market Value
- Where do I get information about closing costs?
- What's a house worth?
- What standards do appraisers use to estimate value?
- What is the return on new versus previously owned homes?
- What is the difference between market value and appraised value?
- What is the difference between list price, sales price and appraised value?
- What are the standard ways of finding out how much a home is worth?
- How do you determine the value of a troubled property?
- Can I find out the value of my home through the Internet?
- Escrow & Closing Costs
- Finding the Right Home
- Home Inspections & Warranties
- Insurance
- Lease Options
- Making an Offer
- Whose obligation is it to disclose pertinent information about a property?
- Who gets the furnishings when a home is sold?
- What is the difference between list price, sales price and appraised value?
- What is the difference between list and sales prices?
- What contingencies should be put in an offer?
- What are the standard contingencies?
- What are some tips on negotiation?
- Is a low offer a good idea?
- How do you determine the value of a troubled property?
- Do I need an attorney when I buy a house?
- Can you buy homes below market?
- Are low-ball offers advisable?
- Negotiating & Closing a Good Deal
- Who gets the furnishings when a home is sold?
- What repairs should the seller make?
- What is the first step to buying a home?
- What is the difference between list price, sales price and appraised value?
- What is the best time to buy?
- What do you think of get-rich-quick real estate schemes?
- What contingencies should be put in an offer?
- What are some tips on negotiation?
- Should I include an inspection contingency in my offer?
- Is there a secret to good negotiating?
- Is a low offer a good idea?
- How much does my real estate agent need to know?
- How is the price set?
- Do I need an attorney when I buy a house?
- Can you negotiate the price on new homes?
- Property Taxes
- Tax Considerations
- Where do I get information on IRS publications?
- When is the best time to buy?
- What is the Mortgage Credit Certificate program?
- What home-buying costs are deductible?
- What are the rules for mortgage credit certificates?
- Should I buy a vacation home?
- How do you choose between buying and renting?
- How do I save on taxes?
- How do I reach the IRS?
- How are fees and assessments figured in a homeowners association?
- Explain the home mortgage deduction . . .
- Are there tax credits for first-time home buyers?
- Are taxes on second homes deductible?
- Are points deductible?
- Whom to Contact
- Where do I get information on lease options?
- Where do I get information on housing market stats?
- Where do I get information on home market stats and trends?
- Where do I get information about housing discrimination?
- Where do I get information about finding a real estate attorney?
- Where do I get information about closing costs?
- Where can I get information on buyer agents?
- What standards do appraisers use to estimate value?
- How do I reach the IRS?
- How do I find a home inspector?
- Working with a Real Estate Agent
- Appraisals & Market Value
- Where & What to Buy
- Condominiums & Townhomes
- Where do I get information on condos?
- Where do I get information on condo association laws?
- How do you choose between condos and single-family homes?
- How do I figure out the homeowners association?
- Do condos have to be made accessible to the disabled?
- Can condos ban smoking?
- Can a condo association ban nudity?
- Are one-bedroom condominiums a good investment?
- Are condos a good investment?
- Are condominiums risky to buy?
- Are condominiums risky to buy?
- Fixer-Uppers
- Where are fixer-uppers found?
- What kind of return is there on remodeling jobs?
- What are some resources for info on home improvements?
- What are some guidelines to follow when trying to find a contractor?
- Are there programs for fixer-uppers?
- Are there gov't programs for rehab?
- Are there any special tax breaks for historic rehab?
- Are fixers a good idea in bad areas?
- Foreclosures
- Where do I learn about HUD foreclosures?
- Where can you find foreclosures?
- Where can you find foreclosed HUD homes?
- What types of foreclosure are there?
- What happens at a trustee sale?
- What about buying a foreclosure "as is"?
- How do you get financing for a foreclosure?
- How do you find government-repossessed homes?
- Do you have to buy HUD homes through a realty agent?
- Can I get a HUD home for as little as $100 down?
- Are foreclosures an option?
- New Homes & Vacation Homes
- Where can I get a list of home builders?
- What is the return on new versus previously owned homes?
- What do you think of a vacation home as an investment?
- What are some new-home cautions?
- What are considerations to buying a new home?
- What about new versus previously owned?
- Should I hire a home inspector for a new home?
- Should I buy a vacation home?
- Do builders give financing?
- Can you negotiate the price on new homes?
- Tenants-in-Common & Co-ops
- What You Can Afford
- Where do I get information on housing market stats?
- When is the best time to buy?
- What is the standard debt-to-income ratio?
- What is Fannie Mae's low-down program?
- What can I afford?
- How much will I spend on maintenance expenses?
- How much does my real estate agent need to know?
- How long do bankruptcies and foreclosures stay on a credit report?
- How do you determine the value of a troubled property?
- Whom to Contact
- Condominiums & Townhomes