The New Complete Book of Home Buying

This is an absolutely essential book for anyone looking to purchase a home. Written with just the right touch of humor, the authors offer practical advice written in a manner that does not talk down to the reader. The authors discuss the fact that a home needs to be looked at as an investment, how and where to conduct your search for a house (including the Internet!), the difference between single family homes, condominiums, and town houses, and much, much more! There are imporant Internet resources included in this book, as well as check-list developed by the authors not only for comparing houses, but the life expectency for various parts of the house, as well as comparing loan options. This is a book to be used, not just read. A definite keeper!

This is a must-read for anyone considering home ownership. I was able to learn many important things as well as pull together what I already knew. In fact I nearly read the whole book the night I received it. The book is also well written as the author is able to keep things flowing.

Home-buying book receives critical acclaim By Robert J. Bruss Inman News Features Consumer Real Estate News If you or a friend is thinking about buying a new or resale home, first read "The New Complete Book of Home Buying" by Michael Sumichrast and Ronald G. Shafer with Martin A. Sumichrast. This is, by far, the best "how to buy a home" book of 2004. The prior edition of this book was published in 1980. Since then, the residential real estate industry has completely changed, mostly for the better. Purchase Bob Bruss reports online. Mortgages are now easily available, even for home buyers with bad credit. Zero-cash down-payment mortgages are obtainable by home purchasers with good credit and good income. But the national median home price has tripled since 1980 to almost $200,000. Co-author Michael Sumichrast was a home builder who later became the chief economist of the National Association of Home Builders. Mike is now retired. His son Martin, who was a schoolboy when the book's prior edition was written, is now a Charlotte, N.C., businessman who added research and a younger approach to the book, especially the chapter on Internet resources. Co-author Ronald G. Shafter was a Wall Street Journal reporter for 38 years who covered housing issues. Although this was a team effort, this is still mostly Michael Sumichrast's book. This easy-reading book is filled with practical advice for both first-time and move-up (or move-down) home buyers. Just in case you think buying a house or condo might not be a great investment, take a look at the page 3 chart showing the annual percent price gain for new and resale homes since 1968. The lowest nationwide annual gain was 2.1 percent in 1982; the highest was 14.4 percent in 1979. For 2004, the author-estimated average gain is 10.9 percent. No wonder investors are fleeing the stock market and investing in first, second and rental homes. "Today, a record 68 percent of Americans own their own homes, up from 64.1 percent 10 years ago and 42 percent in 1940. More than 80 percent of older Americans own their homes, but the biggest gain in the past decade has been among people under age 25," the authors report. The special touches that add practicality and realism to each chapter are the "Mike's favorite story about..." features where Sumichrast tells of personal experiences about the topic. Also especially useful are the many charts and graphs, such as "how much house can you afford?" from Fannie Mae's Web site, which considers family income and mortgage interest rate variables. Throughout the book, the authors add humor to lighten the sometimes-routine home-buying considerations. For example, in the condo and townhouse chapter, the authors explain about the rise and rebirth of condos. "The condo concept isn't new. The first written documents for such housing date to before the Roman Empire. Legend has it that even Julius Caesar went out one day and bought a condo unit where, in the sales office, he ran i