There's no place like home! The number of homes for sale is on the rise and mortgage rates remain near historic lows. That makes now a great time to say goodbye to your landlord. With Nolo's Essential Guide to Buying Your First Home, you'll not only find the right house for you, you'll have fun doing it.
This book provides everything you need to:
research the local market and listings
decide between a house, condo, co-op, or townhouse
create a realistic budget
qualify for a loan you can truly afford
borrow a down payment from friends or family
protect yourself with inspections and insurance, and
negotiate and close the deal successfully.
You'll find insights from 15 real estate professionals--brokers, attorneys, mortgage specialists, a home inspector, a neighborhood researcher, and more. It's like having a team of experts by your side! Plus, read real-life stories of over 20 first-time homebuyers. Download the Homebuyer's Toolkit Dozens of downloadable forms and podcasts that will help you find your dream home, crunch the numbers, interview real estate professionals, inspect the house thoroughly, and more--available on Nolo.com (details inside).
Author Biography
Ilona Bray, J.D. is an award-winning author and legal editor at Nolo, specializing in real estate, immigration law, workplace wellness, and nonprofit fundraising. Many of her books are consistent Nolo bestsellers, among them Effective Fundraising for Nonprofits, U.S. Immigration Made Easy and Nolo's Essential Guide to Buying Your First Home. Her latest book is entitled Selling Your House: Nolo's Essential Guide. She particularly enjoys interviewing people and weaving their stories into her books. Bray's working background includes solo practice, nonprofit, and corporate stints, as well as long periods of volunteering, including an internship at Amnesty International's main legal office in London. She received her law degree and a Master's degree in East Asian (Chinese) Studies from the University of Washington School of Law and Jackson School of International Studies, and an undergraduate degree in philosophy from Bryn Mawr College. In her spare time she enjoys hiking, going to open houses, and gardening. Bray also blogs on Nolo.com on topics such as nonprofit fundraising, real estate, and immigration matters. She's the winner of the 2012 "Best Blog" award from the National Association of Real Estate Editors (NAREE). Alayna Schroeder is a coauthor of several Nolo books, including Selling Your House in a Tough Market and Nolo's Essential Guide to Buying Your First Home. A Sacramento, California lawyer, she has represented employers in litigation, drafted employee handbooks and policies and counseled employers on sound employment practices. She holds a law degree from the University of California, Hastings College of Law. Marcia Stewart writes and edits for Nolo on landlord-tenant law, real estate, and other consumer issues. She is the coauthor of Nolo's Essential Guide to Buying Your First Home, Every Landlord's Legal Guide, First-Time Landlord, Every Tenant's Legal Guide, Leases and Rental Agreements, Renters' Rights, and The Legal Answer Book for Families.
