Your New House : The Alert Consumer's Guide to Buying and Building a Quality Home

by Fields, Alan; Fields, Denise

• ISBN13: 9781889392059
• ISBN10: 1889392057
• Edition: 3rd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1999-11-01
• Publisher: Ingram Pub Services

Summary

By heeding the advice in this well-documented book, consumers can avoid the common pitfalls home buyers often face. With a new home costing an average of $200,000 or more, mistakes can be costly. This new edition includes updated prices and tips for using the Internet to learn about saving on mortgages, research the best deals on building products, and find sites for product manufacturers and sources.

Author Biography

Alan and Denise Fields are nationally known consumer advocates who have been featured on Oprah, Good Morning America, and DATELINE NBC. Their books include the best-selling Bridal Bargains and Baby Bargains. They live in Boulder, Colorado.

Table of Contents

Introduction
Part I Power Home Buying: Getting Ready, Getting Set	xi
Reality Check: Bob Vila is NOT Building Your Home	1	(22)
So, Who Are You Guys Anyway?	2	(1)
Yes, You Should. No, You Shouldn't	2	(2)
Four Truths about Buying a Home No One Tells You	4	(2)
Who Should Not Buy or Build a New Home	6	(2)
Should This Book Be Rated NC-17?	8	(1)
What Does An Average New Home Cost?	9	(3)
Nasty Surprises That Inflate Home Prices	12	(1)
The Goal: Take Control	13	(1)
Key Ingredients of a Quality New Home	14	(1)
Jargon Check: 3 Flavors of New Homes	15	(4)
Why You Should NOT Build a House Yourself	19	(1)
Introducing the Money Bombs	20	(2)
What's New In This Edition	22	(1)
How Much New Home Can You Really Afford?	23	(27)
Ultimate Reality Check: 3 Mistakes to Avoid	23	(1)
The Goal Of This Chapter	24	(1)
Stuff to Know: Points, Locks, Insurance	25	(1)
Two Paths to a New Home	26	(1)
The Golden Rule of New Home Buying or Building	27	(1)
Step-by-Step Strategies	28	(1)
How Much Profit is Fair?	29	(2)
Getting Started: How Far In Advance?	31	(1)
Sources for Construction Loans	31	(1)
Sources for The Best Rates	32	(1)
What's On the Web? Best Online Sources	33	(3)
Shopping Savvy for Online Mortgages	36	(1)
Seventeen Questions to Ask Lenders	37	(1)
Email: One-Time Closing Savings Disappears	38	(2)
Email: Rushed to Pay Deposit	40	(1)
The Two Biggest Myths about the Mortgage Process	41	(1)
Lenders with Loose Lips and Seven Other Money Bombs	42	(1)
The Lock Game	43	(3)
Closing Costs	46	(3)
The Special Hell for the Self-Employed	49	(1)
The Building Team	50	(27)
The Designer: The Rodney Dangerfield of Homebuilding	50	(10)
Four Myths about Architects	50	(2)
Top Sources to Find an Architect	52	(2)
What Will It Cost You?	54	(1)
Reality Check: Who Can Do Without	55	(1)
Going Naked: Making Sure You're Covered	56	(2)
Step by Step Strategies	58	(1)
Fourteen Questions to Ask an Architect	58	(2)
The Private Inspector/Construction Manager	60	(12)
Key Inspection Points	61	(1)
What Will It Cost You?	62	(1)
Six Sources for Finding an Inspector	62	(1)
What's On The Web? Inspection Advice	63	(1)
Why Municipal Building Inspectors Can't Be Trusted	64	(4)
Eight Questions to Ask an Inspector or Construction Manager	68	(2)
Agent-Captured Inspectors and Three Other Money Bombs	70	(2)
Real Estate Attorneys	72	(2)
What's On the Web? Four Law Sites	73	(1)
Other Possible Team Members	74	(1)
Who Is Not on Your Team?	75	(2)
If Dirt Were Dollars... Finding the Right Location for Your Home	77	(17)
The Four Types of Home Sites	77	(1)
Steps to Scoping Out the Location	78	(1)
Steps for Evaluating the Actual Home Site	79	(3)
Environmental Detectives: Sleuthing the Sludge	82	(1)
Seven Costs Involved in Land Purchase	82	(2)
Siting the House: Six Smart Tips	84	(1)
19 Questions to Ask about the Land	85	(1)
Email: Get a Map!	86	(2)
The Hamburger Theory of Neighborhoods	88	(1)
Email: Lot Premiums	89	(1)
Money-Bombs: Soil Troubles & Impact Fees	89	(2)
The Bizarre World of Homeowners' Associations	91	(3)
The Ugly Truth about Real Estate Agents: Helping Hand or Scum of the Earth?	94	(25)
The Trolls of Real Estate	95	(1)
The Internet Battles the Troll	96	(1)
Bill Gates as the Big Bad Wolf	97	(1)
Who Really Needs An Agent?	97	(1)
The Biggest Myth about Real Estate Agents	98	(3)
The $7650 Taxi Cab Ride & 3 Other Money Bombs	101	(1)
The Free Upgrade Dance	102	(5)
Email: Dangerous Liaisons	107	(1)
Our Recommendation: Use a Buyer's Agent	107	(10)
Going it Alone: Net Home Listings	108	(1)
What It Costs	109	(1)
Two Sources to Find A Buyer's Agent	109	(1)
11 Questions to Ask a Buyer's Broker	110	(1)
Email: Beware Registration Cards	111	(1)
The ``Money'' Source Controversy	112	(1)
5 Money Bombs	113	(2)
Email: Agent Fails to Present Offer	115	(2)
The Model Trap & Other Builder Sales Sins	117	(2)
House by Design	119	(32)
``Pick a Floor Plan'' Design	119	(3)
Omission by Design Money Bomb	121	(1)
Plan Books	122	(4)
What's on the Web? Home Plan Sites	124	(1)
Money Bomb: One Size Does Not Fit All	125	(1)
Designer/Drafting Services	126	(1)
Architects	127	(3)
Four Reasons Why This Is the Best Alternative	127	(1)
Architects Who Live on the Planet of Unrealistic Costs	128	(2)
What Will It Cost You?	130	(1)
Twelve Steps to Designing a New Home	131	(4)
The ``Too Many Cooks'' Syndrome	135	(1)
The Top Eight Trends for New Homes	136	(2)
The Storage Squeeze	138	(1)
Eight Inexpensive Thrills	139	(1)
Lemons on the Info Highway	140	(1)
Four Things They Don't Tell You About Golf Course Living	141	(2)
Eco-Houses: They're Not Just for Granola-Heads Anymore	143	(1)
Five Ways To Make A Small House Seem Spacious	144	(2)
Manufactured Homes: Log, Modular, Panel, Post & Beam	146	(2)
27 Design Tips for Kitchens &Baths	148	(3)
Bring on the Builder	151	(36)
Six Good and Not-So-Good Sources for Finding a Builder	153	(2)
What's On the Web? Surfing Builder Sites	155	(1)
When Do You Hire a Builder?	156	(2)
The Dog and Pickup Truck Builder	158	(1)
The Mini-Tycoon	158	(1)
Top-Gun Builders	159	(1)
The Production Builder	160	(1)
13 Questions to Ask a Builder	160	(2)
The Square-Foot Price Myth	162	(2)
Fifteen Steps to Screening a Builder	164	(2)
Detective Work: Builder's Past Builders	166	(2)
10 Clues to Quality Builders	168	(1)
License Loopholes and Other Money Bombs	169	(2)
Builder/Architect Tension	171	(1)
Evaluating Construction on the Fly	172	(2)
Choosing a Production Builder	174	(3)
The Top 10 Biggest Builders	177	(1)
Insider Info: Web Sites	178	(1)
Deceitful Decorating & Five Other Money Bombs	179	(3)
Tips for Saving on Production Homes	182	(3)
Strategy: Use That Salesperson	185	(1)
Translating Builder-Speak to English	186	(1)
The Paper Trail: Protecting Your Rights with a Good Contract	187	(32)
How Bad Contracts Zap Good Buyers	187	(1)
Reality Check: Not Many Options	188	(3)
Sources for Sample Contracts	191	(1)
Fifteen Clauses in a Good Contract	192	(1)
What's on the Web? Legal Database	192	(2)
Email: Cost-Plus Nightmare	194	(11)
Getting Specific: Finding Out What You're Really Buying from a Production Builder	205	(3)
Money Bomb: The Lowball Allowance Game	208	(2)
The Wild World of Home Warranties	210	(9)
Part II Go! Building the Home and Other Traumatic Experiences	219	(72)
Key Inspection Points, Part 1: The Skeleton House	221	(23)
Permits and Approval	221	(1)
Bogus Engineer Approval	222	(1)
Foundations	222	(8)
The Concrete Ticket Tip	223	(1)
Email: Cylinder Tests	224	(1)
Steven Steps to Foundations	225	(1)
Eco-Friendly Alternatives	226	(1)
Undercut Footings and Five Other Money Bombs	227	(3)
Framing	230	(7)
Four Steps to Framing	231	(2)
Four Eco-Friendly Alternatives	233	(1)
Warped Joists and Two Other Money Bombs	234	(1)
Engineered Wood: Miracle or Time Bomb?	234	(3)
Rough-in: Plumbing, Electrical, Heating and Cooling	237	(7)
Map of Recommendation Insulation	239	(1)
Four Eco-Friendly Alternatives	240	(1)
Four Money Bombs	241	(3)
Key Inspection Points, Part II: Finally, Finishing	244	(22)
Exterior Finishing	244	(8)
The Roof: Seven Options and Their Costs	245	(1)
Siding, Gutters and Paint	246	(3)
Plastic Wood and Other Eco-Alternatives	249	(1)
The Primer Money Bomb	249	(3)
Email: Trendsetter Perils	252	(1)
Interior Finishing	252	(13)
Windows, Drywall, Paint, Trim Work	253	(2)
Five Floor-Covering Options	255	(1)
Four Tips for the Best Cabinets	256	(1)
Countertops, Lights, Appliances and Plumbing Fixtures	257	(3)
Nine Eco-Friendly Alternatives	260	(1)
Six Money Bombs, Including New-Carpet Fumes	261	(3)
Best New Products	264	(1)
Final Grading	265	(1)
New Home 911: When Things Go Wrong And How to Fix Them	266	(15)
Top Three Reasons Why You Shouldn't Kill Your Builder	277
Inept Subs, Builder/Architect Animosity	267	(1)
Cost Overruns	268	(1)
The Shrinking Profit Syndrome	269	(2)
Infomercials: Get Home Quick Schemes	271	(1)
Take-the-Money-and-Run Builders: A Vanishing Breed	271	(2)
Legal System Snafus	273	(1)
The Caulk Reflex	274	(1)
Top Six Excuses That Builders Give for Shoddy Work and Mistakes	275	(2)
The Most Common Call-Backs	277	(1)
Email: 13 Hard-Won Lessons	278	(3)
Bargains for Home	281	(10)
Meet the Shopping `Bots	281	(1)
Discount Catalogs	282	(2)
More Deals: Home Stores	284	(1)
Discount Lighting Sources	285	(3)
Discount Carpeting & Flooring	288	(1)
Discount Plumbing Sources	289	(2)
Conclusion: What Does it All Mean?	291	(1)
Appendix A Product Reviews: Windows, Plumbing & More	292	(5)
Windows Brand Reviews	292	(2)
Plumbing Brand Reviews	294	(2)
Roofing	296	(1)
Glossary	297	(6)
Bibliography	303	(2)
About the Authors	305	(2)
Phone/Web Directory	307	(6)
Index	313