The Home Sweet Home Handbook was written for several reasons. First of all, buying and selling a home has some things in common with arranging a funeral. Too often, decisions are based on emotion, without adequate planning and deliberation. Frequently there is a rush to get things done.
Home buying and selling is an expensive proposition with fateful consequences. The participants face great personal pressure from strangers skilled in the arts of persuasion and manipulation. The final costs often exceed expectations. Remorse is often the end result of a real estate transaction.
Another reason for this book stems from the fact that both the home buyer and the seller usually lack basic knowledge about real estate principles and the real estate sales procedure. They are handicapped when dealing with each other and with the third parties who are involved in the title transfer process. The home buyer and seller generally do not really know their rights or their responsibilities in depth. They do not know the key questions that should be asked. Thus, a real need exists to give buyers and sellers concise and complete information, revealed in a straightforward manner, about all the aspects of buying and selling single-family residential (SFR) property.
The real estate industry, like other occupations, has its fair share of lazy, careless, ignorant, and unscrupulous people who masquerade as real estate salespeople, mortgage loan officials, appraisers, home inspectors, and so on. The 80-20 rule applies to the real estate industry just as much as in any other business. The Home Sweet Home Handbook has been written to help home buyers and sellers better select the 20 percent of all real estate professionals who do 80 percent of the business because of their training, initiative, and personal integrity.
Many real estate books have been published, and new advice books arrive weekly. Most, however, are devoted to narrow topics or provide only broad generalizations about SFR property. Some contain gross errors or do not provide accurate information pertaining to residential property. Some are pedantic and voluminous, and therefore are incomprehensible to the average reader.
The Glossary (Appendix H) is more comprehensive than most real estate books, and it covers the topics contained in each chapter. The comprehensive index will help you find whatever you’re looking for in this book. Knowledge is power. The Home Sweet Home Handbook will empower buyers and sellers to take control of the home sale and purchase process. Both parties can save money, time, and energy, as well as avoiding post-sale remorse if they read this book and put its information to full use.
Home Sweet Home Handbook will empower buyers and sellers to take control of the home sale and purchase process. Both parties can save money, time, and energy, as well as avoiding post-sale remorse if they read this book and put its information to full use.
