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Home Inspection

House Inspections 
Before you finalize your house purchase, you'll want to be sure the house is in good condition. Here are the first steps to take. 

Find A Home Inspector Nearest You  (All 50 states & DC)
Website of the American Society of Home Inspectors.

Inspect America (DC and Most States)
Find an easy way to locate a home inspector in your area, learn the credentials and affiliations your home inspector should have,  what to expect before, during, and after a house inspection, how the results of the on- site home inspection should be presented to you and what to expect after the home inspection. 

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Home Loans
Tips, Warnings & Legal Info
The Best Rates
Discrimination
Complaints

Tips, Warnings & Legal Info

FAQs On Home Equity Loans (Texas)

Home Equity Credit Lines (FTC)
Explains your options and what To look for. 

Using Ads To Shop For Home Financing (Fast Facts)

High Rate Home Loans-Your Rights Under The Home Ownership & Equity Protection Act

Getting A Loan: Your Home as Security (Your 3-day Right To Cancel)

Home Equity Loans: Exceptions To The Three-Day Cancellation Rule

Need a Loan? Think Twice About Using Your Home as Collateral

High Risk Home Equity Loans: Avoiding & Voiding Them

FAQs On The Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA)
When RESPA Does & Does Not Protect You against Unfair Housing Practices.

RESPA-Consumer Protection Laws For Home Owners

Avoiding Home Equity Scams

Home Equity Scams-Buyer Beware!


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The Best Rates

Housing Help 
Where to find help in 25 areas related to housing.

Home Loan & Mortgage Calculator
To solve a loan, enter the desired information and press "Compute." Leave the unknown field blank, the loan calculator will solve for that unknown. You can solve for a loan amount, number of payments, payment amount, or interest rate. You can only solve for 1 unknown at a time. 

Google Search On The Lowest Rates
Get the best savings for auto loans, credit cards, savings accounts and CD's, home equity loans & mortgages and unsecured credit lines.   

www.debtworkout.com/altcc.html
Links to residential lenders and mortgage brokers throughout the United States offering loans to borrowers with credit problems, bankruptcy or foreclosures on their credit report.

Bankrate Monitor
Will tell you the best rates for a mortgage or home equity loan.

www.eloan.com
Licensed in at least 40 states, E-LOAN allows consumers to apply for a home loan via e-mail. On this site, consumers can search for the best rates on mortgages and home equity loans. It costs nothing to apply for a loan and your application will get a response within 24 to 48 hours.

www.getsmart.com
GetSmart.com can help you find an affordable home loan - by
connecting you with lenders happy to compete for your business.

For Even More Lenders See Mortgage Rates

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Discrimination
Many of the laws on mortgages also cover home loans.

Office Of The Consumer Credit Commissioner (Texas)
To protect consumers from abusive and deceptive practices regarding mortgages and home loans. Also polices regulated lenders or registered creditors.

Find Your Local Newspaper, Magazine, Radio & TV Stations
Give them a little bad press and you're bargaining power increases tremendously. Select Texas, and then click on your county or city for the proper media to report to. (DC Not Included).

See Housing Help 
      Where to find help in 25 areas related to housing.

See Mortgage Complaints

See Mortgage Discrimination and

For More, See Fair Housing

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Complaints
Many of the laws on mortgages also cover home loans.

Office Of The Consumer Credit Commissioner (Texas)
To protect consumers from abusive and deceptive practices regarding mortgages and home loans. Also polices regulated lenders or registered creditors.

Texas Mortgage Brokers & Loan Officers (Who Regulates Them)
Report bad conduct to the Savings & Loan Dept which regulates over 12,000 mortgage brokers and loan officers throughout Texas.

Find Your Local Newspaper, Magazine, Radio & TV Stations
Give them a little bad press and you're bargaining power increases tremendously. Select Texas, and then click on your county or city for the proper media to report to. (DC Not Included).

Find The AARP In Your State
The AARP offers legal advocacy for seniors and may also have state specific consumer brochures which are available to everyone.

See Housing Related Help Groups 

See Mortgage Complaints

See Mortgage Discrimination and

See Fair Housing

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Selling
Real Estate Agents, Brokers & Recording Offices
Tips, Warnings & Legal Information
Home Loans (To fix up you house before sale)

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Tips, Brochures & Legal Info For Sellers

Selling Your Home (Seller's Links with Descriptions)

Seller Disclosures (What You Need To Tell Potential Buyers)

Questions About Realtors (Consumer-SOS)
Do you even need a realtor to buy or sell your home? How to select one and what should you expect from one.

How Much is Your Home Worth?
Various tips to determine your home's estimated value.

Juggling A Sale And A Purchase
Always sell before you buy. Tips on how to sell, structure
the deal and close.

Home Sales-Actual Prices Of Homes By Their Address or Zip Code for the Last 18 months 
Simply choose an area, and you'll get a list of homes recently
sold there, with the sale price and date. Also get an overview
of all sales activity in the area.

Selling Your Home Without An Agent (Quick Tips)

Selling Your Home-Negotiating The Price 

Closing On The Sale Of Your Home (Tips & Checklist)

Home Sellers' Checklist  (National) Tips on Fixing Up For Resale

Homes-Sure Fire Selling Strategies

Buying A House, Selling A House & Neighbor Law (Nolo.com)
Great articles on the basics in all the areas above.

County Real Estate Records. A Nationwide Listing of County Real Estate Recording Offices

Real Estate Agents & Brokers (BBB Tips)

Real Estate Links For Most States and Big Cities


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Health & Safety

Fire Safety for Texans (Tips & Brochures)

Nuisance Abatement Can Stop Crime (Texas)
Under the Texas nuisance abatement statute, any property can be closed down by court order if it is being use as a crack house, brothel, gang headquarters, or other base of operations for criminals. The statute works by holding the property owners and managers responsible for what happens on their property.

Contacting Your Neighbors (Consumer-SOS)
Use Internet phone books and reverse lookups to find out who your neighbors are and contact them. Good to organize a neighborhood watch, or simply have them turn down the noise.

Texas Municipal Codes (85 City Codes Online)
Learn how your city treats zoning, nuisances, elections and more.

Housing Related Help Groups  

Find Your City's Municipal Codes
Learn how your city code treats, garbage, nuisance and safety hazards. If you can't find your city, follow their links to other code sites that can help you.

Disaster, Fire & Emergencies
Homeowner survival tips.

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Contacting Your Neighbors (Consumer-SOS)
Use Internet phone books and reverse lookups to find out who your neighbors are and contact them. Good to organize a neighborhood watch, or simply have them turn down the noise.

Neighborhood Organizations
Find out about neighborhood watches and other community groups in your area or anywhere else throughout the country.

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Neighbors & Nuisances

Nuisance Abatement Can Stop Crime (Texas)
Under the Texas nuisance abatement statute, any property can be closed down by court order if it is being use as a crack house, brothel, gang headquarters, or other base of operations for criminals. The statute works by holding the property owners and managers responsible for what happens on their property.

Texas Municipal Codes (85 City Codes Online)
Learn how your city treats zoning, nuisances, elections and more.

Contacting Your Neighbors (Consumer-SOS)
Use Internet phone books and reverse lookups to find out who your neighbors are and contact them. Good to organize a neighborhood watch, or simply have them turn down the noise.

Dog Bite Law (Texas)

Dog Bite Law In General

Housing Related Help Groups

Problems With Neighbors (Nolo.com)
Living as near to our neighbors as most of us do, we're bound to have trouble occasionally. From noisy parties to precarious tree branches, from ugly fences to blocked views, here's where
to learn the basics of neighbor law.

Find Your City's Municipal Codes
Learn how your city code treats, garbage, nuisance and safety hazards. If you can't find your city, follow their links to other code sites that can help you.

Neighborhood Organizations
Find out about neighborhood watches and other community groups in your area or anywhere else throughout the country.

For More See Nolo.com

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Taxes

Texas Property Tax Consultants (Who Regulates Them)
A Property Tax Consultant prepares tax renditions and reports for someone who is protesting their taxes. Property Tax Consultants also consult or advise others regarding protests or renditions.

Tax Assessor Data Base (All 50 States, Not DC)
Find phone numbers and links to tax assessors throughout the US.

Tax Breaks For Selling Your Home: Read the Fine Print
If you sell your home, you may exclude up to $250,000 of your capital gain from tax. For married
couples, the exclusion is $500,000.

Your Home As A Tax Shelter (Nolo.com)
Your home shelters you from the elements, but it is also a valuable tax shelter.

For More See Nolo.com and
See Consumer-SOS/Taxes

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Related Topics

Fair Housing

See the agencies below if you've been denied housing or been discriminated against in a housing related matter because of your Race, Color, Religion, Sex, National Origin, Family Status, Or Disability.

The Fair Housing Division of the Commission of Equal Opportunity 

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Discrimination Hotline  (800) 669-9777   

United Way Help Line (For all 50 States, DC & Puerto Rico)
Choose your state, select your city, and look up help agencies galore!!! Their stellar search engine can lead you to any social service topic you can think of. Just type in the words "homeowner and minority" or "housing" and "discrimination".

Find Your Local Newspaper, Magazine, Radio & TV Stations
Give them a little bad press and you're bargaining power increases tremendously. Select Texas, and then click on your county or city for the proper media to report to. (DC Not Included).

See Mortgage Complaints

See Mortgage Discrimination

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Defective Conditions

A Homeowner's Guide to Residential Construction Disputes (Texas)
Your rights against contractors and home builders who mess up.

Texas Real Estate Commission
Regulates realtors, agents and brokers, including those that didn't disclose prior defects they knew about. 

Housing Defects-Getting The At Fault Party To Pay For Repairs

Where To Go If You Have a Problem With Those Who Build and Repair Housing
Construction Associations, Design Professional Organizations, Government Agencies, Standards Organizations and other agencies that hold these groups accountable. 

Find Your City Municipal Codes  (All 50 States, Not DC)
Learn how your city code treats, garbage, nuisance and safety hazards.

Find Your Local Newspaper, Magazine, Radio & TV Stations
Give them a little bad press and you're bargaining power increases tremendously. Select Texas, and then click on your county or city for the proper media to report to. (DC Not Included).

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Forms

Contract For Purchase Of Residence Or Other Real Estate

See Lawyers/Legal Forms (Consumer-SOS)

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