Tips and Traps When Buying a Home

by Robert Irwin

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Editorial Reviews
Product Description

Robert Irwin is America's #1 real estate expert. But don't take our word for it--the sales figures speak for themselves. To date, his real estate titles have sold more than one and a half million copies.

Of all of his books, those in the bestselling "Tips and Traps" series continue to be the most popular(more than 500,000 sold), and two of those--Tips and Traps When Buying a Home and Tips and Traps When Selling a Home--have gone on to become the #1 guides in their respective subjects.

In the seven years since those two classics were last revised the real estate market has undergone many dramatic changes. Irwin has updated these bestsellers to reflect these changes so readers can be successful in their real estate endeavors.

Featuring fully revised facts and figures that reflect the most recent changes in the real estate market,Tips and Traps When Buying a Home, Third Editionprovides first-time and experienced home buyers alike with practical, step-by-step information on a broad range of proven home buying strategies, along with indispensable advice and guidance on:

Buying in an "Up" market
"Flipping," buying with "options," bidding wars, and other new facts of life
The latest new financing options
The new rules of closing costs

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All Customer Reviews
Average Customer Review: 4 out of 5 stars

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3 out of 5 stars

Mr. Irwin, first do your homework, 2008-02-20
Mr. Irwin states in this book that a real estate agent taking a commission on his own purchase can get sued on the grounds that he is effectively acting as an agent for the seller, and this creates a conflict of interest. This is based on the antiquated notion that a buyer's agent is construed to be a subagent of a seller's agent. Today, a buyer's agent is construed to act independently of a seller's agent, and is thus free to take a commission on his own purchase. The matter is simply one of an agreement between agents to share the commission.

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:

4 out of 5 stars

informative, easy to read, slightly flawed, 2007-08-03
This book is very easy to read, well organized, and contains a LOT of essential information for anyone looking to purchase a home. I recommend it without any reservations.

One issue: I'm not sure if there's a newer edition of this book than I received last year, but it's a bit out of date. For better or worse, a lot of mortgages floating around out there today - especially for first time homeowners - are not your standard 30 year fixed. The financing section of the book needs an update detailing the pros and cons of the newer and more complicated types of financing that are more common today. It does this to an extent, but it's insufficient. Also, the figures used in the book are completely unrealistic. Mortgage rates are very different and so are housing prices. Not a problem if you can handle the math on your own, but certain tables are completely obsolete at this point in time.

Just one point on a personal note: This book really tells you about all the BAD things going on in real estate today. This isn't a fault - it's good to know about the million different potential pitfalls when buying a home - but it never tells you to put things into perspective. In other words, you can come away from reading this feeling very pessimistic and cynical about the entire process, which doesn't have to be the case. If you arm yourself with knowledge, a good attitude, and surround yourself with good people - namely the best real estate attorney and home inspector you can find - you'll find the experience isn't as bad as the book can make it seem.

Best of luck!

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:

4 out of 5 stars

Worth a read; small investment for some reasonable insights, 2006-11-10
Not every page is enlightening, but overall builds confidence in the daunting process.

0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:

3 out of 5 stars

details, 2006-11-05
Found in useful but not vital when buying our NC home. May be more details than you need to worry about.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4 out of 5 stars

Plenty of great information and advice, 2004-12-08
I disagree with the people here who criticize this book for being about "buy low, sell high" and investment purposes. I have a feeling that these people are referring to some of Robert Irwin's other books aimed at real estate moguls in training; however, I took this book as being aimed at people who want to buy the house to actually live in it and to have a home of their own.

I used this book prior to buying my home and took much of the advice to heart. I interviewed several buyer's agents until I found one I liked and trusted, something that is spoken about in the book clearly. I also got some great advice from the finance sections that kept me from paying PMI and helped deal with the mortgage broker.

I bought this book for some friends who were looking at buying a house and it helped them when one deal went sour. I also loaned my copy to two friends shortly before they bought their houses... of course they didn't read it and got screwed on several points (mainly during inspection and negotiation). Oh well... you can lead a horse to water...

Buy and read this book if you're interested in looking for a house. It's well worth it.

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