How to Buy a House in California (Paperback)

by Ralph E. Warner (Author), Ira Serkes (Author), George Devine (Author) "This book is full of practical, up-to-date information about the financial realities, legal rules and real estate industry customs you must understand to successfully purchase..." (more)
Key Phrases: total monthly carrying costs, approximate remaining balance, transfer disclosure statement, Civil Code, San Francisco, Ideal House Profile (more...)

Editorial Reviews

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

This book can’t be too highly recommended for home buyers and home owners. -- San Francisco Examiner --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review
"A valuable resource for California homebuyers and real estate professionals throughout its many editions." --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Nolo; 4th edition (October 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0873373561
• ISBN-13: 978-0873373562
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #4,115,963 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

55 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent reference for first-time CA buyers, June 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: How to Buy a House in California (5th Ed.) (Paperback)

If you've bought a house before, some parts of this book may seem somewhat elementary. And, admittedly, a lot of the information about how much you can afford is available on the web on various home-buying sites. On the other hand, I found the location-specific information very helpful, and the advice in the book is solid and reliable.

The real winners are those who are preparing to buy a house for the first time. This book will take you through pretty much all the steps, from thinking about what you want in a house and finding good neighborhoods, through figuring out how much you can afford. It's an excellent reference guide for somebody who's just starting to think about buying, and will be useful all the way through closing. IIf I had to choose just one book on buying a house, it would be this one.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent resource well worth it's retail price., December 29, 1997

By	[e-mail] (Irvine, California) - See all my reviews

This well-written, concise resource helped us to buy our first home in California, with neither the seller nor us (the buyer) using a real estate agent. As a result of having read this book, we were able to cut $10,000 off the price of our home, and convinced the seller to accept our offer even with a contingency on the sale of another property. I highly recommend this book to anyone considering buying a home in California.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars As usual, the only book you'll need., January 18, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: How to Buy a House in California (How to Buy a House in California, 7th ed) (Paperback)

I used the Nolo Press tenants' rights book in the past to (successfully) sue my deposit-greedy/law-breaking landlords. I just used this book to buy my first home in the competitive Bay Area (yes, it's still highly competitive even in these "tough times"). Nolo's book is accurate and insightful, written in a voice that's accessible and, at times, fun and tongue-in-cheek. The organization of information, as usual, is right on. And the links and helpful sidebars are fantastic! Don't waste your money on other books. I swear this one is the only book you'll need.