How to Buy a House in California [Paperback]

Ralph Warner (Author), Ira Serkes (Author), George Devine (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1413304036 | ISBN-13: 978-1413304039 | Publication Date: March 2007 | Edition: 11

The most complete guide to buying a home in the Golden State

A thorough, practical guide to every aspect of buying a house, How to Buy a House in California will help you make informed decisions that can save you thousands of dollars. With this bestseller in hand, you'll learn how to:

choose a house and neighborhood

find the right agent

get the most up-to-date information on mortgage options and rates

take advantage of creative financing strategies - from

seller financing to government loans

figure out how much down payment you can afford

make an offer and negotiate with confidence for the best price

buy a new house in a development

inspect a house for physical problems and environmental hazards

juggle buying and selling houses simultaneously

successfully go through escrow

The 11th edition is completely updated and provides an easy method for calculating how much house you can afford. Plus, you'll find the current rules for government-assisted loans and the latest resources.

List of Forms:
Ideal House Profile
House Priorities Worksheet
House Comparison Worksheet
Family Financial Statement
Directions for Completing the Family Financial Statement

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A compendium of home-buying information, from choosing your castle to escaping escrow unscathed." -- San Jose Mercury News

"A valuable resource for California homebuyers and real estate professionals throughout its many editions." -- San Francisco Chronicle

"Berkeley-based Nolo, the highly respected do-it-yourself legal publishing company, has an excellent book entitled How To Buy A House In California... [which] has many sections for folks looking to buy a home on a budget..." -- Tom Vacar, Consumer Editor, KTVU

"Invest in this book... it is virtually impossible to think of anything they left out because they have anticipated every question home buyers might have." -- Robert Bruss,syndicated real estate columnist

"One of the most detailed real estate books you will ever read.... Filled with practical advice..." -- Los Angeles Times

About the Author

Ralph "Jake" Warner stepped aside as day-to-day manager of Nolo in 2004, after 32 years as president of the company. Widely regarded as a pioneer of the self-help law movement, Warner founded Nolo with Ed Sherman in 1972. He began publishing do-it-yourself law books written by him and his colleagues after numerous publishers rejected them. When personal computers came along, he added software to many Nolo books. When the Internet arrived, he pioneered online marketing of books.

In addition to running the company, Warner was an active editor and author. He wrote many books, including Get a Life: You Don't Need a Million to Retire Well and How to Run a Thriving Business. Today, he serves as chairman of Nolo's board of directors. He has also embarked on a new business venture: TallTales Audio, an audio book production company devoted to children's storytelling, online and on CD.

In guiding Nolo, perhaps the greatest challenge Warner faced was an attack by the Texas legal establishment in 1998. Texas lawyers tried to brand Nolo as practicing law without a license. The ensuing battle galvanized Nolo, whose final victory has become part of Nolo legend.

Ira Serkes is a local Realtor with RE/MAX Real Estate and a Certified Residential Specialist. He and his wife, Carol, specialize in helping home buyers and sellers throughout the east bay. He is a founding member of The Institute for Luxury Home Marketing and author of Nolo's How to Buy a House in California and Get the Best Deal When Selling Your Home - San Francisco Bay Area Edition from Gabriel Publications. Serkes is also a graduate of Realtors Institute (GRI), a Certified Internet Real Estate Professional (e-Pro), a Seniors Real Estate Specialist (SRES) and one of only 4,000 U.S. an Accredited Buyer Representatives (ABR).

George Devine is a licensed real estate broker and a widely respected educator in the real estate field. He holds a B.A. from the University of San Francisco, and an M.A. from Marquette University, and has pursued additional studies at San Francisco State University, Seton Hall University, Fordham University, New York University, the University of California at Berkeley and other academic instututions. Currently, he teaches real estate at the McLaren School of Business at the University of San Francisco, where he was named the Outstanding Adjunct Professor. For several years, George wrote the popular "Real Estate Handbook" column in the weekly Real Estate Guide section of the San Francisco Progress. He is the author of For Sale By Owner in California and co-author of How to Buy a House in California.

Product Details

• Paperback: 413 pages
• Publisher: NOLO; 11 edition (March 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1413304036
• ISBN-13: 978-1413304039
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 7 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,141,375 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Demystify the Maze, July 23, 2007

By 

Michael Billing - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: How to Buy a House in California (Paperback)

This book rocks! It is well written, clearly organized, full of incredibly useful insights and obviates the need for any other books. Purchasing property in the Golden State is hugely complicated and this book unravels the knots and truly educates the potential buyer to the point that ones agent will be impressed. Every aspect is covered and in such depth that I truly believe it helped me negotiate the best price and the best mortgage terms. I fully understood all the steps and when it came to final closing costs, I was impressed that I was able to accurately predict exactly what those would be ...no shocks here. I highly recommend this book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Usability Limited by Format, June 2, 2009

By 

Lee "LeeT" (San Francisco, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: How to Buy a House in California (Kindle Edition)

While I appreciate the thoroughness and helpfulness of the text, this book depends on the reader to fill in multiple written exercises to help them assess their needs and capabilities. Because the e-book gives the user no way to access high fidelity versions of the exercise sheets, it's utility is decreased significantly. I would recommend against buying the e-book because of this limitation.

I attempted to contact NoLo press after the purchase to see if they had a remedy to provide the worksheets in a high fidelity format, but was told that it was not available to purchasers of the Kindle edition of the book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Agree with the other opinions, March 17, 2008

By 

G. Thiemecke (Ventura, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: How to Buy a House in California (Paperback)

I won't waste your time with repeating the same things everyone else has said. This is the best book for first-time home buying in SoCal; you won't lose money or time with this book. Gratuitous advice if you are buying in SoCal for the first time:
1. Things are done a little differently out here, so DO NOT listen to people from other states regarding need for a lawyer on every purchase; the escrow agency takes care of most of those details unless a problem arises. Just follow the book...it will guide you well.
2. If the home inspection report mentions a horizontal furnace related to Consolidated Inc. in the past, DO have your furnace inspected even if the serial number does not show a recalled NOx rod (see your home inspector, or a CA home inspection manual)...the Consolidated/Premier furnace that came with my place needed to be replaced despite not being on the recall list because of a fire hazard (eep!).
3. It's also handy to have a home inspection manual anyway so that any repairs you perform as a DIY'er won't cause problems down the road on resale, if needed.