Finding It Before you can buy the house of your dreams, you have to find it. Which means figuring out what you want, what you need, and how to get it. Deciding What You Want It's easy to dream. It's a lot tougher to make real-life decisions based on what you have to spend and what's on the market. These articles provide you with information to help you figure out what kind of home is really right for you and make your dreams a reality. House-Hunting Hunting for a home can quickly become confusing and frustrating. Should you use an agent or house-hunt on your own? How can you choose the right neighborhood? In this section, you'll find information that can help you get moving in the right direction. The Perfect Home If you're looking for the perfect home, forget it. Every house, including one that's just been totally renovated or newly built, will need a dose of TLC as time goes on. If you're willing to live with and correct these imperfections, you may be able to create real value that translates into a nice profit when it comes time to sell. Buying It It's one thing to find the right home, it's a lot harder to make the winning offer. But with the right information, you'll not only be able to make the deal, but close it and finance it as well. Making the Deal For most, making an offer for a home is the most stressful part of the process. The information you'll find here will help you figure out everything from how much a piece of real estate is worth to how to win a bidding war. Closing the Deal There's little chance you'll have a successful closing unless all of the details are in place. Here's some information to help you get from offer to closing without missing a beat. Borrowing Money Unless you've recently won the lottery, it's likely you'll be getting a loan to pay for your new home. Here's everything you need to know to get your application approved. Making It Right Just because a home is right for you doesn't make it perfect. There are time-tested ways to build in value while creating the home of your dreams. In this section you'll find information to help you figure out what kinds of renovation projects you should tackle, how much they should cost, and where to find the contractors who can get the job done right. Home Improvement Basics After closing on your new home, don't be surprised if your first impulse is to pick up a paintbrush. Even if your new condo, townhouse or single family house is in perfect condition, our natural instinct is to make a house our own. Planning and Budgeting New curtains, new paint job, new appliances, new light fixtures, and new carpet. The list of things you can do to improve a home is endless. But ask yourself, "What's the budget?" Here are some things to think about when planning and budgeting for your renovation project. Contractors Unless you're going to do the work yourself, you'll need to pull together a team of folks to help you. For small jobs, you may only need, say, a painter. But for major jobs, expect to hire a contractor, architect and perhaps even a designer and landscape designer upfront. Take It & Run: Printer/Wireless Friendly Tools & Resources Obviously, not all of your house-hunting, financing, and renovation tasks take place in front of the computer. That's why we've prepared helpful tools and useful resources in printable and wireless formats. Download tips from our articles, print out a house-hunting journal, or take our mortgage calculator on the road on your PDA. Legal Contracts are an integral part of purchasing and renovating a home. Here you'll find sample contracts for a wide variety of situations you'll encounter along the way, with tips from a real estate attorney who spends most of his time helping people achieve their American Dream. Financial It's likely that your home will be the single largest purchase of your life. Here's everything you need to know about making the numbers work. Getting Organized Finding, financing, or renovating takes organization. If you don't have your vision and plans in order, it'll be more difficult to ensure that you'll get what you want. To get the process off on the right foot, and to help get the best results possible, start with some of the documents and advice in this section. Ilyce's Corner: Expert Advice A weekly column from Ilyce Glink, syndicated columnist, best-selling book author and radio talk-show host with insightful suggestions and practical tips for finding or making a home that's right for you. Visitors are Invited to submit questions which she will try to address on the program. Make Your House a Home: Daily Tips Helpful hints and simple solutions for turning your house into a haven for mind, body and spirit. C O N T R I B U T O R S MANAGING EDITOR Ilyce Glink Ilyce Glink is an award-winning nationally syndicated journalist, author and radio talk show host, who writes about real estate, personal finance and business. She is the author of four books, including the best-selling 100 Questions Every First-Time Home Buyer Should Ask, 10 Steps to Home Ownership: A Workbook for First-Time Buyers and 100 Questions You Should Ask About Your Personal Finances. Her twice-weekly column "Real Estate Matters" is syndicated to more than 30 newspapers with a weekly readership of several million. Her work has also been published by dozens of newspapers and magazines including Worth Magazine, Chicago Sun Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, San Diego Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, San Jose Mercury News, Crain's Chicago Business and Working Woman. She is the real estate and personal finance correspondent for WGN-TV Channel 9 in Chicago, and the money expert for Lifetime Live, a national TV show based in New York. Her next book, 50 Simple Things You Can Do To Improve Your Personal Finances, will be published in January 2001. CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Barbara Buchholz The former editor of House & Garden Guides magazine, Barbara Buchholz is a freelance writer and editor for a variety of consumer and business publications, including the New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Crain's Chicago Business Journal, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Travel & Leisure magazine, and House Beautiful. She is the author of 12 books, including Porch Style and The New Homeowner's Handbook: What to do After You Move In. She has appeared as a home remodeling expert on the Oprah Winfrey show. Margaret Crane A freelance author and journalist, Margaret Crane is the co-author of six books including Successful Homebuilding and Remodeling: Real-Life Advice for Getting the House You Want without the Roof (or Sky), Falling In (Dearborn 1999), The New Homeowner's Handbook: What To Do After You Move In (Dearborn 2000), and Apartment Living: New Designs for Urban Living (Rockport Publishers Inc. 2000). Her articles regularly appear in Newsweek, Midwest Living, Wine Spectator, Inc., Success, The New York Times, Crain's Small Business, Money, and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Lisa Skolnik Lisa Skolnik is a freelance writer and editor for several leading home improvement, design and lifestyle publications, including Good Housekeeping, Woman's Day, Metropolitan Home and Interiors. She is a regular contributor to the Chicago Tribune, which nationally syndicates two of her columns, and the Chicago city editor for Metropolitan Home magazine. She is the author/co-author of 12 books on home design, including Creative Home Design, In the Country Style, Simple Style, American Country and For Your Home: Offices, For Your Home: Dining Areas, For Your Home: Storage. Jim Sulski Jim Sulski writes about real estate development and home improvement for numerous publications, including the Chicago Tribune, Crain's Chicago Business and national magazines such as Consumers Digest. He is also a faculty member with the Journalism Department at Columbia College Chicago. Samuel Tamkin Samuel Tamkin is a real estate attorney who has helped thousands of clients purchase, sell, build, and lease property in Illinois, Michigan, and New York. Copyright © 2009 Studio One Networks. All rights reserved.