Don't Buy a Car - or Did You Already Buy One?

Writing an Offer - Safeguards Regarding the Property

• When Income Grows and You Want to Buy "Stuff"
• Debt-to-Income Ratios and Car Payments
• How Buying a Car Reduces Your Purchase Price

• Disclosures From the Seller
• Condition of the Property Upon Transfer
• Inspections You May Require
• Final Walk-Through Inspection

Things Not To Do Before Buying a Home

How Financing Details Affect Your Offer

• No Major Purchases of Any Kind
• Don't Move Money Around
• Should You Change Jobs?
• Reasons to Delay Buying a Home

• Down Payment
• Interest Rate
• Closing Costs and Financing Incentives
• Seller Financing
• Cash Offers

Why Buying a Home is a Good Idea

How FHA and VA Financing Affects Your Offer

• The Best Investment
• Income Tax Savings
• Stable Monthly Housing Costs
• Forced Savings
• Freedom and Individuality
• The Business Cycle and Buying a Home
• Looking Ahead - Buyer's Remorse
• Buyer's Remorse - Did You Make a Huge Mistake?

• Extra Costs for the Seller
• More Detailed (and expensive) Appraisals

Why Search for A Realtor?

You and the Seller Must Agree on Some Services

• Finding an Agent by "Accident"
• Listing Agents vs. Selling (Buyer's) Agents
• Should You Call the Listing Agent?
• Agent's Advertising - Is the Purpose What You Think?
• Finding Your Own Realtor
• Some Basics About the Search
• How to Conduct the Search
• Interviewing A Good Realtor
• When the Agent Asks You for an Appointment

• Settlement and Escrow
• Title Insurance Companies
• Termite and Pest Inspections

Buying a Home With Resale Value - Location

Buying Hints & Insights

• Location, Location, Location?
• Location - Local Community, Town or City
• Location - the Local Neighborhood
• Location - the Residential Neighborhood

• Foreclosures and the Housing Crisis
• How to Sell Your Home in a Slow Market
• Should You Start with a High Sales Price?
• Preforeclosure flipping: The key to real estate riches
• When Your Home's Value is Less Than the Mortgage
• Should You Buy a Home in Today's Market?
• The Home "Wealth" Effect
• Closing at the End of the Month.
• What is the Multiple Listing Service?
• How the Lockbox Helps Buyers and Sellers
• Location, Location, Location - Means...what?
• When Market Value Outpaces Appraised Value
• What Goes With the Home When You Sell or Buy?
• Negotiating Contingencies in Real Estate Contracts
• If you bought cars the way you bought houses
• Asking the Seller to Pay Your Closing Costs
• Where is an Agent's "True Value"..?
• The Earnest Money Deposit

Buying a Home With Resale Value - the House

• A Home With a View?
• Lot Choice and Landscaping
• House Size
• Bedrooms & Bathrooms
• Closets, Garage & Laundry
• Kitchen
• Fireplaces
• Swimming Pool?

Resources Courtesy of:

Comparable Sales and Your Offer Price

• Determining Your Offer Price
• Comparable Sales in the Public Record
• Comparable Sales in the Multiple Listing Service
• Comparable Sales - Pending Transactions

Offering to Purchase Real Estate- the Basics

• Introduction and Overview
• Contingencies in a Purchase Offer
• Earnest Money Deposit
• The Closing Date
• Transfer of Possession