How to Buy a House in California

by Ralph E. Warner, Ira Serkes, George Devine

Strategies that work in California's unique market.

Looking for a house in the Golden State? How to Buy a House in California will show you how to get a house you can afford and will enjoy living in for many years.

With this bestseller in hand, you'll learn how

Genres: Nonfiction, Personal Finance, Finance, Business

413 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1992

About the author

Ralph "Jake" Warner, co-founder of Nolo in 1971, was a trailblazer in the do-it-yourself law movement. He helped make legal guidance widely accessible through books, software, and online resources. A prolific author and editor, Warner wrote titles like Retire Happy and Save Your Small Business. He earned his law degree from Boalt Hall at UC Berkeley and his undergraduate degree in history from Princeton.

Reviews

[Suzanne Howard · Rating 5 out of 5]

The cashier and I had a good laugh when she saw the title of this book. There’s a happy ending, as I’m buying a house this month!

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great resource!!

[Deb · Rating 5 out of 5]

** Finding home **

Although I just bought a home in California this past year, I thought it’d be kinda fun to read through this book to reflect on the process (and what a process it was!), and maybe learn a few more details I didn’t know before.

And I was right: this book was actually fun to read. Not only does it give an excellent overview of the entire California home-buying process—including determining the type of home you want to/can afford to buy, finding and funding that home, working with real-estate professionals, determining and negotiating the offer, staying sane through the piles of legalese contracts and clauses, navigating escrow, and sealing the deal—it also includes myriad resources for easily accessing more detailed information on each of the topics. The authors do an impressive job in presenting this information in a highly organized, easily readable, and even at times entertaining way (whoever said home-buying manuals had to be dry?).

Reading this book certainly provided me an extra appreciation for all the details involved in the home-buying process (and relief that I recently made it through all of them untangled!), and it also gave me more insight into the worlds of the sellers, real estate professionals, and others during this process.

I’d definitely recommend this book to anyone on the periphery of home-buying, or anyone who wants a better understanding of the process.

And, maybe next time I jump into a complicated endeavor, I’ll read the how-to book *beforehand*!

[Olivia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really helpful, up-to-date guide! It was refreshing to find advice that was so specific to our area and to the current housing market. Previous guides I had checked out from the library were published during the housing bubble and were doling out wildly unrealistic advice. ("Think you can't afford it? Keep trying till you find a lender willing to give you a no-doc, nothing down loan!")

The book also confirmed my long held suspicion that Californians (especially Angelenos?) are "into" ghosts. Note this sidebar on pg. 279: "Disclosing Ghosts and Haunting." What is in the air over here??

(Don't answer that.)

[Cher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Since I did not use this book to actually buy a house, just learn about the buying process, I'm not sure my 5 stars are creditable. As a basic primer on California law, the process of using agents, what to watch out for, etc, I thought this book was highly informative. The information was well organized, easy to find and understand. It does not cover every possible aspect of home buying or selling in great detail, but it is an excellent source for a first-time home buyer to get a realistic framework in their mind of the process.

[Yune · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't actually plan on doing this, but I was curious about the process. I'm not anymore, which I suppose fulfills the function of the book. Informative and thorough, but lacking in the way of zest. The authors acknowledge the insanity of the Californian housing market without really being either reassuring or wry about it.

If I ever come into enough money to purchase in my crazy expensive area, I'd probably reread it for a refresher on all the necessary stages, but I would supplement it with other resources.

[Carl · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very clear and detailed description of all the steps involved in buying a house in northern or southern California, with things to watch out for. The section on how to find a good real estate agent is a bit thin; I recommend Charles Jaffe's The Right Way to Hire Financial Help - 2nd Ed.: A Complete Guide to Choosing and Managing Brokers, Financial Planners, Insurance Agents, Lawyers, Tax Preparers, Bankers, and Real Estate Agents as a supplement for that.

I read the 12th edition (200), but an updated 13th edition should be out in 2011.

[Maria]

I bought this book two years ago with the best of intentions but got a little side-tracked. There's actually a newer now edition but hopefully the essence will still be helpful. This time I mean business. I am going through this thing with a highlighter in hand. So far the book mostly seems to be advocating common sense and patience. But it's nice to have reassurance that this whole house-buying process is possible even for the average person and even in CA.

[Emily Lind Freeman · Rating 4 out of 5]

First of all, I got this as an e-book from my library. I never had heard of that concept, but I love it! I have read and re-read many chapters and have found it extremely helpful. I'm a novice at all of this home-buying stuff, but of all the books I read, I finally am beginning to understand a lot of the mortgage lingo. The forms in the back are very helpful as well.

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well-organized, well-written, very thorough (it even includes a section on what to do if Martians occupy your home before you take possession!), and with pointers to lots of additional helpful information on the web and other sources. I'd recommend it to anyone buying a house in California, but particularly if you are a new buyer who finds the whole process a bit confusing and overwhelming.

[Jun Yan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very useful book, contains comprehensive information and provides a good overview for people who have no home buying experience at all. One still need to go to referred websites to obtain more information

[Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe I should try it out now

[Pax Ahimsa Gethen]

How to Buy a House in California, 10th Edition by Ralph E. Warner (2005)

[Matthias Hernandez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helpful in understanding the process and what to pay attention to. It contains good information for neophytes, but I would also recommend relying on your realtors.