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IPL Pathfinder: Buying Your First Home
Buying your first home can be an
intimidating, as well as exciting, process. This pathfinder is designed to help
first time homebuyers find information on several aspects of homebuying,
including how to find the home of your dreams, how to finance your new home, and
how to use the library to find out more about the homebuying process..
General Information
U.S.
Department of Housing and Urban
Development
http://www.hud.gov/
The HUD page
is an excellent starting point for beginning your homebuying research. Because
it's part of the U.S. government, this site does not include ads. It's purpose
is to serve consumers, and it does a great job. You'll find out about your legal
rights, how much mortgage you can afford, how to work with a real estate agent,
as well as information on later steps in purchasing a home - Inspection,
appraisal, and closing. And if you're interested in purchasing a HUD home or
financing through FHA or VA programs, this is the place to find out everything
you wanted to know!
The
Motley Fool:
Home Center
http://www.fool.com/homecenter/homecenter.htm
Though
it's named "The Motley Fool," there's nothing foolish about this site - It's
packed with helpful information for home buyers. They've arranged the site
cleverly, based on the questions you're surely asking (and a few you may have
forgotten to ask, like "ready for a home?"). One feature that sets this site
apart is the "Fool Home Message Board," where you can ask the questions that
keep you up at night. This site is a must-see.
Home
Buyer's Information
Center
http://www.ourfamilyplace.com/homebuyer/
A
nice comprehensive site from Smart Sense Publications, you'll find "to do" lists
for home buyers, frequently asked questions, how to find and use an agent, and
much more.
Yahoo: Real Estate
http://list.realestate.yahoo.com/
Yahoo: Business & Economy - Shopping and Services - Real Estate - By Region
http://dir.yahoo.com/business_and_economy/shopping_and_services/real_estate/by_region/
Yahoo
is a great place to visit when you're looking for a guide to web pages on a
particular topic - In this case, real estate. The page includes links to
Frequently Asked Questions, legal rights, and even government foreclosure
listings. The regional directory will allow you to gather information specific
to your state and/or community.
The
RealEstate Library
http://relibrary.com/
This
site has Real Estate 101 resources to learn about the process involved in buying property. It also provides an Agent locator to
find someone to assist you in your area.
How To Find a Home
Realtor.com
http://www.realtor.com/
This
site may become an addiction! While Realtor.com has comprehensive information
(including getting started, closing, and moving), you'll love it for it's real
estate listings. With 1.2 million property listings, small towns are listed, as
are budget-conscious homes. You select the community you are interested in, as
well as price range and features, and this site will give you a list of homes
that fit your criteria. Most listings include a photo, and some include a
virtual tour.
The Finance Process
Consumer
Information Center Housing Publications
http://www.gsa.gov/Portal/home.jsp
From
the folks in Pueblo, Colorado comes tons of consumer information published by
the U.S. Government. On their housing pages, you'll find out how to get the best
mortgage possible, how to buy a home with a low downpayment, and how to save on
insurance costs.
Homebuyer's Fair
http://www.homefair.com/homefair/servlet/ActionServlet?pid=27&cid=homefair
While this site aims to be comprehensive (even including "find a home"), it's strength
lies in resources for financing. There are several tools and calculators to help
you make informed decisions regarding home financing, including a mortgage
qualifier, salary calculator, and "get the best mortgage."
Yahoo:
Business & Economy - Shopping and Services - Real Estate - Financing
http://dir.yahoo.com/Business_and_Economy/Shopping_and_Services/Real_Estate/Financing/
If you're shopping around for a lender, this is the place to start. Yahoo has
indexed thirteen pages of lenders who want to help you finance your new home.
Since the legalities of homebuying are constantly changing, currency is very important in
selecting books to borrow from the library or to purchase. A few titles that
give good, basic information on homebuying are:
Home Buying for Dummies, Eric Tyson and Ray Brown
If
you're familiar with the "for Dummies" series of books, you know they really
aren't for dummies, they're for anyone who needs to begin learning about a
subject. This book covers saving for a downpayment, selecting the best loan, and
even includes a list of things to do after you buy.
Buying and Selling a Home, Kiplinger's Personal Finance
Staff
Though this book covers selling a home as well as buying, it's a great
resource. It's main selling point is the authorship by Kiplinger's Personal
Finance - These people know what they're talking about! The book covers finance
options, both FHA and VA as well as traditional, and is user-friendly and easy
to read.
The American Bar Association Guide to Home Ownership : The Complete
and Easy Guide to All the Law Every Home Owner Should Know, American
Bar Association
Any homebuyer must be familiar with the law, and this book
from the American Bar Association covers all the basic points, and some you
probably hadn't considered (for instance, your liability when someone slips on
your icy driveway). This book received gets high marks for writing about the law
in a clear, understandable manner.
If you want to read more at your local public library, you'll look under
these Dewey Decimal classification numbers:
332.722 Mortgage Loans
333.338 House Buying
643.12 Home Ownership
If you're looking for more information at a university library, you'll be
using the following Library of Congress subject headings:
House buying--United States
Home ownership--United
States
Housing--Finance
You may also wish to see Business and Economics
- Consumer Issues and Services Resources
This pathfinder created by Carly M. Wiggins
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Last updated
Apr 17, 2002