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| Find Your Dream Home | |
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| The Dream of Owning a Home | |
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| The Advantages of Owning a Home | |
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| The Disadvantages of Owning a Home | |
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| When Not to Buy a Home | |
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| Little-Known Facts About Buying a Home | |
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| Finding Real Estate Information with Your PC | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Understanding the Up-Front Costs of Buying a Home | |
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| Down Payments | |
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| How Much Down Payment Do You Need? | |
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| Where to Get the Down Payment | |
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| What If You Don't Have Money for the Down Payment? | |
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| When Do You Fork Over the Down Payment? | |
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| Closing Costs | |
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| Lender Fees | |
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| Advance and Reserve Payments | |
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| Other Fees | |
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| Adding Up All the Costs | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Figuring Out How Much You Can Borrow | |
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| Before All the Numbers Make You Dizzy | |
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| How Much Are You Worth? | |
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| Totaling Your Income | |
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| Totaling Your Monthly Expenses | |
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| How Much Can You Borrow? | |
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| Getting a Ballpark Figure | |
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| Using a Lender's Ballpark Figure | |
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| What's Your Ratio? | |
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| Looking at an Example | |
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| Prequalifying for a Loan | |
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| Prequalifying Informally | |
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| Getting Preapproved | |
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| Prequalifying Online | |
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| Checking Your Credit Record | |
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| Getting a Credit Report | |
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| Correcting a Mistake or Responding to Problems | |
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| Dealing with a Bad Credit Report | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Picking an Agent | |
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| Types of Brokers | |
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| Brokers | |
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| Agents | |
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| Realtors | |
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| New Home Agents | |
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| Who Pays the Agent, or Who's on My Side? | |
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| Using a Buyer's Agent | |
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| Using a Subagent | |
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| Using a Discount Broker | |
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| Do You Need an Agent? | |
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| Financial Help | |
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| Finding the Right House | |
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| Negotiating and Closing the Deal | |
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| Selecting a Good Agent | |
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| Finding an Agent | |
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| Finding an Agent Online | |
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| Putting an Agent to the Test | |
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| Getting Rid of an Agent | |
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| Working with For-Sale-By-Owner Homes | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Defining Your Dream Home | |
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| A Few Cautions | |
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| This Is Your Life | |
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| Home to Stay or Home to Resell? | |
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| Is This a Family Home? | |
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| What Is Your Job Situation? | |
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| Location, Location, Location | |
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| Style of House | |
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| How Many Stories? | |
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| To Paint or Not to Paint | |
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| Age of the House | |
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| Existing Home | |
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| New Home | |
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| Condominium | |
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| The Home Itself | |
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| Eating | |
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| Sleeping | |
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| Getting Clean | |
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| Relaxing | |
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| Storing Stuff | |
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| Outside the House | |
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| Heating, Cooling, and More | |
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| Amenities | |
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| Definite No's | |
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| Checklist | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Finding Houses on the Market | |
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| What to Expect When Looking for a Home | |
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| How Long Does It Take? | |
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| Buyer's Market versus Seller's Market | |
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| Seasonal Sales | |
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| Finding the Right Place | |
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| Finding the Right Community | |
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| Finding the Right Neighborhood | |
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| Finding a House | |
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| Drive-Bys | |
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| Local Papers | |
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| MLS Listings | |
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| Word of Mouth | |
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| Auctions and Foreclosures | |
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| Online Listings | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Looking at a House | |
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| What to Expect | |
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| Do You Like the House? | |
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| Does the House Have Everything You Need? | |
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| Can You Live in the House? | |
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| If You Don't Like Something, Can You Change It? | |
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| Is the House Well-Maintained? | |
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| Is the Neighborhood Acceptable? | |
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| What Are the Taxes? | |
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| Your House and the Neighborhood | |
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| Checking the Area | |
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| What Are the Schools Like? | |
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| What About Emergencies? | |
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| What About Fun? | |
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| Checklist | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Make an Offer | |
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| Making an Offer | |
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| Understanding the Sales or Purchase Contract | |
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| What's Included in the Offer | |
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| Tips on Making an Offer | |
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| How Much Do You Offer? | |
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| Comparing Other Sales Prices | |
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| How Motivated Is the Seller? | |
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| Can You Afford the House? | |
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| What Terms? | |
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| What Else from the Seller? | |
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| Contingencies | |
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| Financing | |
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| The Deed and Title | |
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| The Inspection | |
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| The Appraisal | |
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| Other Contingencies | |
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| Setting Time Limits | |
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| Personal Property | |
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| Condition of House at Settlement | |
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| Prorations | |
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| Other Provisions | |
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| Making a Deposit | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Negotiating | |
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| Understanding the Offer Process | |
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| Offer Strategies | |
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| Handling Counteroffers | |
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| Receiving a Counteroffer | |
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| Responding to a Counteroffer | |
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| When to Quit | |
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| Having an Offer Accepted | |
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| Withdrawing an Offer | |
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| Do I Need a Real Estate Attorney? | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Buying a New Home | |
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| Finding a House | |
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| Selecting a Subdivision | |
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| Searching for a New Home Online | |
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| Selecting a Good Builder | |
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| Selecting a Plan | |
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| Selecting a Good Lot | |
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| Negotiating a Sales Contract | |
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| Negotiating Contract Terms | |
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| Negotiating for Upgrades | |
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| Using an Agent | |
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| Getting a Deal | |
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| Home Warranties | |
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| Avoiding Problems | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Buying a Condominium or Co-Op | |
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| Buying a Condominium or Townhouse | |
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| Advantages and Disadvantages of Condominium Living | |
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| The Board Rules! | |
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| Selecting a Community | |
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| Checking Out the Condominium | |
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| Making an Offer | |
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| Buying a Co-Op | |
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| Selecting a Co-Op | |
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| Financing Your Co-Op | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Get Financing | |
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| Getting Financing | |
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| How Lending Works | |
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| Interest Rates, or What's the Charge? | |
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| Points | |
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| Term | |
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| Types of Financing | |
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| Conventional Loans | |
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| Government-Backed Loans | |
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| Fixed-Rate Loans | |
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| Adjustable-Rate Mortgage Loans | |
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| Other Loan Types | |
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| Conforming versus Nonconforming Loans | |
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| How to Decide on the Type of Financing | |
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| How Much Can You Afford for a Down Payment? | |
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| How Much Can You Afford for a Monthly Payment? | |
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| How Long Will You Live in the House? | |
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| What Are the Current Interest Rates? | |
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| What's Your Risk Level? | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Getting a Fixed-Rate Mortgage | |
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| Adding the Pluses | |
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| Subtracting the Minuses | |
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| Checking Interest and Points | |
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| How Long to Pay? | |
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| 30-Year versus 15-Year versus Biweekly | |
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| Is the Shorter Term Better? | |
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| Prepaying Your Mortgage | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Getting an Adjustable-Rate Mortgage | |
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| Pros and Cons of an Adjustable-Rate Mortgage | |
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| Pros | |
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| Cons | |
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| Understanding How an Adjustable-Rate Mortgage Works | |
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| Initial or Teaser Rate | |
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| The Index | |
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| The Margin | |
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| The Adjustment Interval | |
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| Caps | |
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| Negative Amortization Is a No-No | |
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| Selecting an ARM--What to Look For | |
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| Interest Rates | |
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| Index | |
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| Margins | |
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| Adjustment Intervals | |
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| Caps | |
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| Other Features to Look For | |
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| Look at the Worst-Case Scenario | |
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| Two-Step Mortgages | |
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| Types of Two-Steps | |
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| How to Do the Two-Step | |
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| Is the Two-Step for You? | |
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| 7/23 and 5/25 Balloons | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Understanding Other Financing | |
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| VA Loans | |
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| Assumptions | |
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| Balloon Mortgages | |
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| Takebacks, Second Mortgages, and Similar Alternatives | |
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| Buy-Downs | |
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| Land Contracts or Layaway Payments | |
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| Lease Options | |
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| Other Options | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Selecting a Lender | |
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| Types of Lenders | |
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| Who's Got the Money? | |
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| The Secondary Market, or the Business of Selling Mortgages | |
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| Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae, and Bobby Sue | |
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| Portfolio and Jumbo Loans | |
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| Where to Find a Lender | |
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| Getting Help from Your Agent | |
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| Reviewing a Mortgage Advertisement | |
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| Looking for a Lender Online | |
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| Questions to Ask Lenders | |
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| Comparing Fixed-Rate Loans | |
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| Comparing ARMs | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Applying for the Mortgage | |
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| The Players | |
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| How the Lender Decides Whether to Lend You Money | |
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| Taking the Application | |
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| Verifying Information | |
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| Credit Report | |
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| Getting an Appraisal | |
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| Approving or Denying the Loan | |
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| Applying for the Loan | |
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| Spilling Your Financial Guts | |
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| Locking In an Interest Rate | |
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| Estimating Closing Costs | |
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| Estimating Interest Rates | |
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| Ensuring a Smooth Process | |
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| What to Do If You Can't Get a Loan | |
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| Income Problems | |
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| Credit Problems | |
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| Appraisal Problems | |
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| Discrimination | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Close on the House | |
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| Insurance | |
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| Understanding the Types of Insurance | |
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| Getting Home Insurance | |
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| What Insurance Covers | |
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| Types of Insurance | |
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| How Much Do You Need? | |
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| Tips on Insurance | |
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| Search the Web for Insurance Information | |
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| How Payments Are Made | |
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| Comparing Insurance | |
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| Getting Mortgage Insurance | |
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| Paying Mortgage Insurance | |
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| Canceling Mortgage Insurance | |
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| Getting Title Insurance | |
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| The Title Search | |
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| What Title Insurance Protects | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Having the Home Inspected | |
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| Why Get an Inspection? | |
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| Scheduling an Inspection | |
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| What the Inspector Checks | |
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| What the Inspector Should Check | |
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| What the Inspector Doesn't Check | |
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| What the Inspector Shouldn't Do | |
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| Reading the Inspection Report | |
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| Handling Any Problems | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Handling the Closing: Buyer's Point of View | |
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| What Has to Happen Before the Closing | |
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| Who Owns the House? | |
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| The Final Walk-Through | |
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| What You Pay at Closing | |
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| Don't Forget the Down Payment | |
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| Closing Costs | |
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| Items Payable in Connection with the Loan | |
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| Items Required by the Lender to Be Paid in Advance | |
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| Reserves Deposited with the Lender | |
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| Title Charges | |
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| Government Recording and Transfer Charges | |
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| Additional Settlement Charges | |
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| Escrow Accounts--Forced Payments | |
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| The Total Comes to | |
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| What Happens at Closing | |
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| What You Should Bring to the Big Event | |
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| Signed, Sealed, and Delivered | |
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| Exchanging Money | |
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| The Totals | |
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| The Closing Costs | |
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| The Passing of the Keys | |
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| Handling Problems | |
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| Walk-Through Problems | |
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| Money Problems | |
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| Loan Problems | |
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| Title Problems | |
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| Moving In! | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Sell Your House | |
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| Deciding To Sell Your Home | |
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| Why Do You Want to Sell? | |
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| Likes, Dislikes, Wishes, and Wants | |
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| What Do You Hope to Gain? | |
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| Timing the Sale | |
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| When Is the Best Time to Sell? | |
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| Buying Your Next Home | |
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| Buy First | |
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| Buy and Sell Together | |
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| Sell First | |
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| What Costs Are Involved? | |
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| What to Expect When You Sell Your Home | |
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| Getting the House Ready | |
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| Deciding Whether to Use an Agent | |
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| Pricing and Marketing the House | |
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| Negotiating Offers | |
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| Closing on the House | |
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| Buying a New House | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Getting the House Ready | |
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| Doing Repairs | |
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| Inspecting the House Yourself | |
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| Having a Professional Inspection Done | |
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| Deciding What Repairs to Make | |
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| Do It Yourself or Hire Someone? | |
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| Should You Remodel? | |
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| Cleaning Up | |
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| First Impressions Count--Clean Up the Outside | |
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| Cleaning the Inside | |
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| Eliminating Clutter | |
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| Put Everything Away! | |
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| Undecorating the House | |
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| Collecting Information | |
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| Understanding Seller Disclosure | |
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| Do You Have to Disclose? | |
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| What Must You Disclose? | |
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| Completing a Seller Disclosure Form | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Selecting an Agent | |
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| Should You Use an Agent or Sell Alone? | |
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| What an Agent Can Do for You | |
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| Going It Alone | |
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| Using an Agent | |
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| Finding an Agent | |
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| Quizzing the Agent | |
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| Listing Presentation | |
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| Signing a Listing Contract | |
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| Types of Contracts | |
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| What the Contract Should Include | |
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| Getting Out of Listing | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Pricing and Marketing the House | |
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| Setting the Listing Price | |
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| Studying Comparables | |
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| Getting an Appraisal | |
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| How the Market Affects Price | |
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| Deciding What Else to Offer | |
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| Figuring Your Net Proceeds | |
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| Getting the Attention of Buyers | |
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| The MLS Listing | |
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| Online Listings | |
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| Other Marketing Techniques | |
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| Showing Your Home | |
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| Scheduling a Showing | |
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| Getting the House Ready | |
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| Dealing with Criticism | |
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| Holding an Open House | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Dealing with Purchase Offers | |
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| Dealing with Other Agents | |
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| Evaluating an Offer | |
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| What an Offer Should Include | |
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| What Price and at What Terms? | |
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| Checking the Contingencies | |
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| Checking the Time Limits | |
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| Making a Counteroffer | |
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| Accepting an Offer | |
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| What to Do If You Don't Get Any Offers | |
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| Should You Help with Financing? | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Handling the Closing: Seller's Point of View | |
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| What Is Closing? | |
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| What the Buyer Has to Do | |
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| What You Have to Do | |
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| Termites and Other Critters | |
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| Checking the Chain of Ownership | |
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| Collecting Documents | |
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| Hiring an Orchestrater | |
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| Handling Problems | |
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| What Happens at Closing | |
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| Fees You Can Expect | |
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| |
| The HUD-1 Statement--My Column or Yours | |
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| Sign on the Dotted Line | |
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| Tax Implications | |
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| Reporting the Sale of Your Home | |
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| Figuring the Tax Basis | |
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| Moving Out! | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Selling Your Home Yourself | |
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| Mapping Out Your Strategy | |
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| Get the House Ready | |
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| Set the List Price | |
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| Market the Home | |
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| Help the Buyer Get Financing | |
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| Negotiate the Sale | |
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| Close on the House | |
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| Using an Agent | |
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| Hiring an Attorney | |
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| Using an Escrow Company | |
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| Setting the Price | |
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| Figuring Your Net Proceeds | |
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| Defining What Financial Terms Are Acceptable | |
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| Marketing Your Home | |
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| Putting a Sign in Your Yard | |
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| Taking Out an Ad | |
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| Marketing Your Home Online | |
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| Preparing Fact Sheets | |
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| Showing Your Home | |
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| Handling Sales Calls | |
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| Showing Your House | |
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| Holding Open Houses | |
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| Helping the Buyer with Financing | |
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| Negotiating an Offer | |
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| Be Prepared | |
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| Drawing Up Offers | |
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| Reviewing Offers | |
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| Closing on the House | |
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| Knowing When to Call It Quits | |
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| The Least You Need to Know | |
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| Loan Payment Tables | |
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| Resources | |
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| Phone Numbers and Addresses | |
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| Online Resources | |
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| Glossary | |
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| Index | |