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Book Reviews of Bob Vila's Guide to Buying Your Dream House (Bob Vila's Guide to Buying Your Dream House)

Bob Vila's Guide to Buying Your Dream House (Bob Vila's Guide to Buying Your Dream House)
Bob Vila's Guide to Buying Your Dream House - Bob Vila's Guide to Buying Your Dream House
Author: Bob Vila
ISBN-13: 9780316902915
ISBN-10: 0316902918
Publication Date: 2/2/1990
Pages: 283
Rating:
  • Currently 3.5/5 Stars.
 5

3.5 stars, based on 5 ratings
Publisher: Little, Brown
Book Type: Paperback
Reviews: Amazon | Write a Review

Book Reviews submitted by our Members...sorted by voted most helpful

gypsybrain avatar reviewed Bob Vila's Guide to Buying Your Dream House (Bob Vila's Guide to Buying Your Dream House) on + 6 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 5
This is something of a departure for the former host of PBS's This Old House , who is better known for his advice on fixing houses than for buying them. Thus, while the physical qualities of the would-be ``dream house'' are nicely covered in the several chapters on house inspection, the real value of the book is in Vila's explication of the arcane processes related to purchase and finance. These include working with a broker; shopping for a mortgage; making the offer (and negotiating the best price); and surviving the curious ritual of the closing. Throughout, Vila is more cautionary than most writers when considering the true costs of home ownership. He sees the days of speculative real estate investment as mostly over. A house, he says, is to be lived in and enjoyed. A good guide for the first-time home buyer and recommended for most public libraries.-- Bill Demo, Tompkins Cortland Community Coll., Dryden, N.Y.