How to Get the Best Home Loan, 2nd Edition

Rating:
Summary: Provides the Details other Books don't
Review: I have read several home-buying books and two other mortgage books and found this to be the only source for detailed information. As another reviewer suggested, if you want the feel-good basics then look elsewhere ("Navigating the Mortgage Maze", by Turnauer or "The Centuray 21 Guide to Choosing your Mortgage"). My view is that if you are taking the time to read a book on a subject, you want details. I find generalities and broad sweeping statements a waste of time. This text provides a breadth and depth of information in a clear and succinct manner. My only complaint is that the book could be updated with a newer edition. However this 10 year-old text is by no means out of date since the author gives you the framework to understand everything in the fast-changing mortgage industry.

Rating:
Summary: Very Useful and Informative
Review: Nine times out of ten the biggest factor that decides whether or not you successfully buy or sell a real estate property is -- financing. And yet it is the one area people know the least about. By understanding home loans and how they work, you dramatically increase your chances. And this book is the best on the subject I have read. The writer is a professional experienced mortgage broker who writes well. The bottomline, as the writer states, is "Most loans...are approved or denied based on some very fundamental rules." It's really good to know these fundamentals.

Rating:
Summary: You need to know this stuff
Review: Obviously, your success in buying or selling a home -- as a first-time home buyer, an investor, whatever -- or when you refinance -- is due in very large part to the financing you get. So obviously you should strive to learn as much as possible about how to get the best loan. Yes, you could rely on a mortgage broker and hope he/she is honest enough and competent enough to save you that extra [money]. But why risk it.

Here's the bottom line: As the author states, "Most loans...are approved or denied based on some very fundamental reasons." It's a good idea to know those fundamentals and what your options are.

And if you're still wondering whether or not it's worth it to know this info, let me ask you if you're going to pay that $ document preparation fee on your closing statement. How about that loan origination fee? (is 1% reasonable?) It's a very good idea to know this stuff, and I think this is probably the best book on the subject.