Insights on Web Surfing for a Home or Mortgage
Before you buy a home or get a mortgage, read “How to Find a Home and Get a Mortgage on the Internet” by Randy Johnson. The author has been a mortgage broker for more than 20 years, so he knows the mortgage industry inside out. He shares this valuable insight in explaining how to get preapproved for a mortgage before shopping for a home.
The book emphasizes using the Internet to accomplish these tasks. Johnson evaluates the best Internet mortgage and home search Web sites. Along the way, he shares his opinions, especially when rating the home-listing Web sites, including the “for sale by owner” resources.
It’s a pleasure reading a real estate book written by an author who thoroughly understands his subjects. Johnson cites numerous examples, such as using the Internet to shop for a home near where he lives, and compares the pros and cons of the various home-listing Web sites.
When the author explains how to shop for mortgages, whether on the Internet or at a local mortgage office, he really shines. Occasionally, the explanations get a bit technical, such as when he compares one mortgage against another. But Johnson is at his best when he explains, from his insider vantage point, how some mortgage lenders rip off borrowers. He also emphasizes how to find an honest mortgage broker.
Equally important, the book explains how to locate a home for sale, whether it’s listed by a real estate agent or being sold by a do-it-yourself seller. Since Johnson’s wife is a real estate agent, he adds her viewpoint on how a sharp buyer’s agent can aid the buyer’s quest.
Johnson never says buyers should get mortgages and buy homes solely on the Internet. Instead, he recommends the Internet as a starting point, to compare mortgage interest rates and to learn what homes are available in a community. He emphasizes the importance of having an ethical buyer’s agent to show homes found on the Internet.
Especially revealing is Johnson’s comparison of the Internet home-listing Web sites. He reviews 25 homes listed for sale in his local area. None of the major Web sites (https://realtor.com, https://homeadvisor.com, https://homeseekers.com and https://cyberhomes.com) included all the homes. Although Realtor.com had the most test listings, the others had many home listings not found on Realtor.com. For this reason, Johnson emphasizes shopping all major home-listing Web sites. Readers can spend days checking out the many recommended Web sites.
