Douglas Gray - Buying and Selling a Home For Canadians For Dummies

Buying & Selling a Home For Canadians For Dummies, 5th edition

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Copyright 2021 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey

Published simultaneously in Canada

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2020947493

ISBN: 978-1-119-71591-7

ISBN 978-1-119-71619-8 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-119-71620-4 (ebk)

1. Chapter 3
2. Chapter 4
3. Chapter 5
4. Chapter 7
5. Chapter 14

1. Chapter 8
2. Chapter 14

Buying or selling a home is an incredibly enormous undertaking, but at the same time it shouldnt be the cause of shortness of breath, dizziness, or an extended hospital stay. However, it does involve some of the most important financial decisions youll ever make, as chances are your home is the biggest asset youll ever own. But its not so bad especially with this book in hand. Armed with information about everything from mortgages to heating systems, you can calmly face the real estate world and see how it works. With this book, you get to know what fixed-rate, open-term mortgages are. You find out just how important a home inspection can be. And most important, you discover what your priorities are, and how to match them with a home a home of your own.

If youre considering buying a home, youve come to the right place! Self-promotion aside, we tell you what you need to think about before making that huge decision, how to make your choices in a realistic and informed way, and how to avoid unexpected problems, crumbling foundations, and street parking.

If youre selling, we share all kinds of information about what your buyer expects from you, how to get the most money for your home, and how to manage the details so you dont overlook anything. If youre thinking about selling your home yourself, you can find lots of tips to help you out. Selling your home is a long, intense process that many people do as a full-time job; we try to help you see whether youre really up for that kind of do-it-yourself challenge.

Buying a new home or leaving an old and cherished one involves a lot of decisions and considerations. In this book, we outline them all and help you move on to your new home, wherever that may be.

Some of you are buyers, some of you are sellers, and some of you are both at the same time. This new edition of Buying & Selling a Home For Canadians For Dummies builds on the valuable information published in the previous editions, dividing the book into two key parts:

• Read the first half if youre looking to buy a home.
• Read the second half if youre trying to sell one.

Because its good to know whats happening on both sides of the transaction, this handy guide groups a lot of the basic information about buying and selling a home up front in a new before getting into the nitty-gritty of either process, and weve extensively updated the text throughout with the latest information. We cover diverse topics like assembling the team of key experts who will make sure you hit a home run with your home purchase. We discuss finding the right mortgage for you, shopping for a new home, and selling your property whether youre trading up, downsizing, or a change in job or life circumstances requires it.

Wherever you start reading, we guarantee you can find information thats useful and easy to absorb. We do our best to keep it simple, but sometimes you just cant get around using the A-word (amortization). Consider those moments like a stress test (another concept we discuss in the mortgage chapter).

When we revised this book, we made the following assumptions about you:

• Youre interested in buying or selling a home. Were also fairly certain youre more interested in owning a home than renting it, which means we focus on how you can buy and sell a home for you, your family, your parents, and your children. This book spends very little time on tenants (also known as mortgage helpers) and home-based businesses. You can find other books to help you understand those activities.
• Youre fairly close to buying a home and using this book as part of the planning process. You may even be on the fence about whether youre ready to be a homeowner. If so, we help you navigate the pros and cons of buying and renting and explain the financial benefits that can be yours from investing in your own home. If you already have a home, this book is a great refresher course on how to handle all the details involved in choosing a new home. If this is your first time on the home-buying market, we take you through all the key decisions to make and the steps to take to get yourself into the right home at the right price.