Buying a Home

Pros and Cons of Buying a New House

One of the first choices you’ll make when looking for a new home is whether to buy a brand new or existing home. This post explores some considerations of each type and what you might expect.

The Benefits of Renting: A Surprisingly Long List

While I very much want to buy a house, I completely acknowledge that renting comes with a lot of under-talked-about benefits. Here are some of them.

Buying Your First House: A Simple Guide

Following my recent flurry of posts on home buying, a few of you have asked for a more comprehensive guide to the process.

72 Questions to Find the Perfect House

Once you’ve saved enough money for a house, the time comes to start searching for that real estate gem. Here are questions to ask yourself to find the home you’ll love.

Taxes, PMI, Insurance, and More: Huge Wildcards When Buying a Home

It used to be that a mortgage accounted for 70, 80, maybe 90% of what you were paying out every month. No longer the case, it seems.

How Much Do I Need to Buy a House?

Yesterday’s post looked at how to save money for a house, but didn’t touch on what your actual target should be. Today, I’m going to cover the back end of things–how much money you’ll need to buy a house.

How to Save Money for a House

With the recession putting a damper on the housing market, a lot of people are wondering how to save money for a house so they can get in the game while prices and rates are good.

8 Reasons I Want a Home

Yesterday, I talked about the declining popularity of home ownership. Given all those reasons and the current economy, there are still many good reasons I want to own a home. Here is the list: Moving frequently is incredibly expensive if you consider the direct and indirect costs (you have to outfit your new home, reconnect [...]

When Home Ownership Went Downhill

Have you noticed how owning a home is getting a terrible reputation lately? We are a society that loves to challenge the status quo, and thanks to the spectacular collapse of the housing market, the long-time “American Dream” is the new target. “Isn’t this the best time to buy a home?,” you might ask. “Aren’t [...]

The Path to Home Ownership

Looking at the various components of what you typically need to buy a home. Includes some case study material and commentary on how things have changed with the economy.

Ask Fizzle: Home Foreclosures and Cat Workouts

Today, I introduce Ask Fizzle, where I will answer reader questions on a regular basis. Mike and Bayah start us off with questions about home foreclosure and saving on cats.

How a $300 Home Inspection Saved Us $10,000

Nearly one year ago, my wife and I made an attempt to purchase our first home. In retrospect, we made a good decision to back out since home values have continued to plummet since, and the value of that property has likely dropped at least another 25%. However, it wasn’t fear of market decline that [...]

Buying a Home

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