How to Save Thousands of Dollars on Your Home Mortgage, 2nd Edition [Paperback]

Randy Johnson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 19, 2002

Find The Home Mortgage That's Right For You

Finding the right mortgage can be complex, confusing, and frustrating. But that doesn't mean you have to settle for anything other than the terms you want. This indispensable and newly updated second edition of How to Save Thousands of Dollars on Your Home Mortgage spells out everything mortgage hunters need to know in clear and accessible terms. It covers more loan alternatives than any other book and examines the importance of discount points. It offers complete details on virtually every mortgage option currently available, what advantages each option offers, how to choose the right one for your needs, and how to save money in the process. New information in this edition will help you use the Internet to find a home and get a mortgage, examine automated underwriting models and conforming loan limits, and weigh new shopping strategies. Easy-to-read charts and graphs, helpful sample forms, and numerous examples will help you understand:
* First-time buyers programs
* APR, buy-downs, reverse mortgages, accelerated payoffs, and zero point loans
* Refinancing strategies
* Closing costs, lender fees, and other expenses
* How to dispute credit report errors and fix credit problems
* How to use the Internet for loan analysis

Editorial Reviews

Review

At last, here's a 'how to get a mortgage' book that takes the borrower's side, explaining how lenders earn their biggest profits and how borrowers can take advantage of lenders....This is one of the few 'how to get a mortgage' books that cannot be recommended to highly. It's not perfect (the reverse mortgage section is very superficial), but the insider knowledge makes up for the weaknesses. Home buyers, realty agents, mortgage lenders and homeowners should study this book to understand the real workings of the huge home mortgage industry. -- Robert Bruss, San Francisco Examiner, June 7 1998 --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Publisher

Few home owners are aware of all the types of mortgages available to them. This very reader-friendly resource enables them to explore the many alternatives that are out there--and save a sizable amount of money in the process. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 2 edition (July 19, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471223271
• ISBN-13: 978-0471223276
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #492,942 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent book, March 23, 2002

By 

BookGuy (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: How to Save Thousands of Dollars on Your Home Mortgage (Paperback)

This is one of the books I bought when I bought my first house. It's a fine reference source if you want to know what all the different mortgage options are (e.g., what's the difference between a fixed-rate mortgage and an adjustable-rate mortgage, what indexes are ARMs tied to, etc.). And the author--Randy Johnson--makes honest recommendations on which mortgages best suit certain typical lifestyles or income scenarios. Also, one of the books great strengths is the discussion of how many discount points to pay. The one thing I found missing, though*, was at least one real-world scenario that you're likely to see used if you visit a mortgage broker in my neck of the woods [Silicon Valley], or other high-priced regions. And that is the use of a 'first' and a 'second' mortgage in a so-called "piggyback financing" or "80-10-10 financing" arrangement which can help you eliminate Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI). There's no in-depth discussion of this technique--which is very common--which I found incredible. There's all this advice on getting an ARM tied to the CD index vs. the LIBOR index with a balloon payment if you stay in your house for 3 years instead of 10 years and so on and so forth...but nothing about getting a conforming, fixed-rate, 30-year first mortgage and a smaller second in a technique to reduce your overall payments during the lives of the loans. It's a simple technique, and very worth a detailed analysis, but I couldn't find it. Anyway, like I said, if you want to know esoteric information about mortgages, then this is a worthy book. It helped me, it's just a little shy of a full-fledged 5-star effort.

*Please Note: The review written above pertained to the 1st edition which I initially gave a 4-star rating. The second edition--which I now own also--has effectively covered "Piggyback" loans (i.e, 80-10-10 transactions), which I think propels this book into a solid 5-star work. The second edition also has updated information on shopping for a mortgage on the Internet, and some [though not all] of the examples that show different types of mortgages have had their interest rates brought more into line with present-day (i.e., 2002) rates. This is an excellent book for folks who want to know all about mortgages.

48 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very Informative but......, January 5, 2001

By 

Sadiqa L. Dickens "anaisnine" (Jersey Shore, NJ) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: How to Save Thousands of Dollars on Your Home Mortgage (Paperback)

Randy Johnson is very informative and contains alot of useful information...once you understand what he is trying to explain. In my opinion this is not the book to read if you have absolutely NO idea how the mortgage process works and how and what lenders do in that process. If you are a total novice , the terminology Mr. Johnson throws around may sound very cryptic; and his examples might make sense to you if you were either a finance major in college or have some minor experience with terms of finance. In my opinon, the total novice should read another book for the basics before coming to this one . I recommend Eric Tyson's Mortgages For Dummies. It is very concise, clear, easy to understand and concentrates solely on the basics. After you have acquired some basic knowledge of the lending process, then come back to Mr.Johsnon for some serious nuts and bolts tips and strategies. To me, that is the best way to maximize the insider info and stratagies mapped out in Mr. Johnson's book. However, for those of you versed in the lending lingo and who have been around the block a time or two when it comes to the home buying process, this book is definitely a must read. You need look no further for info that really will help you to save money on your next loan or refinance(but I still recommend MFDs , it can compliment or elaborate on alot of the info mentioned in Randy's book). So, all in all, a good read for the novice and for the semi-pro.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Some interesting detail, but could be better, October 15, 2001

By 

J. Grattan "Ideas can move the world" (Lawrenceville, GA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: How to Save Thousands of Dollars on Your Home Mortgage (Paperback)

This book is written by a mortgage industry insider and makes the claim that it will reveal the inner workings or even secrets of the process of obtaining a mortgage. And there is some interesting detail concerning ARMs, lender rate sheets, zero-point loans, etc.

But I think the book lacks organization and consistency. Like a lot of "insider" books it needed to have been read by a lot of "outsiders" for coherency before publishing. The author is not consistent in using the terminology that he defines at the start. He often is not clear about when he is talking about the firm originating your loan or the ultimate buyer of the loan. He creates as much confusion as clarity in his sloppy use of the terms: rebates, points, loan discount points, or loan origination points. Furthermore, for a detail-oriented book I was surprised that section numbers of a standard settlement form, 800, 900, 1000, etc, were not referred to when discussing closing costs.

I would have like to have seen more realistic discussion about the ability of a consumer to force a loan originator to reveal or discuss the profit margin on a loan as the author suggests one do. As far as I know American businesses are not in the habit and in fact resist revealing markups to consumers.

For some readers this book may be just what they are looking for, but I suspect that for most the detail is just not presented in a way that makes it particularly understandable or usable.