The Skinny on the Housing Crisis: What Every Homeowner and Homebuyer Needs to Know |  | Author: Jim Randel
Publisher: Rand Media Co
Category: Book
List Price: $14.95
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Seller: 2ndchancebooks
Rating:  30 reviews
Sales Rank: 578,776
Media: Perfect Paperback
Edition: 1st
Pages: 176
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.4
ISBN: 098189352X
Dewey Decimal Number: 333.3380973
EAN: 9780981893525
ASIN: 098189352X
Publication Date: April 9, 2009
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Well finally someone has taken a new approach to a non-fiction book.
THE SKINNY ON THE HOUSING CRISIS: What Every Homeowner and Homebuyer NEEDS TO KNOW!!! is, well, skinny. This 168 page book is 2/3 illustrated with stick people and 1/3 text. The point is that less can be more and that it is time for writers and publishers to value the reader s time and attention span.
The Skinny is about a very serious subject how America dragged itself into the worst housing and credit crisis since The Great Depression. The story is told through the experience of a young couple, Billy and Beth, who in 2006 buy their first house. In 2007 they lose their house to foreclosure.
The Skinny takes the reader through Billy and Beth s experiences dealing with real estate agents, house inspectors, appraisers, mortgage brokers, lenders and attorneys. Each of these encounters is a lesson for any person considering the purchase or sale of a home, investing in real estate or, just taking out a mortgage.
After Billy and Beth close on their home, The Skinny follows the story of their mortgage from lender to investment bank to investor in Europe. We learn how mortgage sales and securitizations became a trillion dollar business, disconnecting the American borrower from the lender and de-humanizing the process.
The Skinny is an entertaining account of a multi-trillion dollar industry real estate buying, selling and borrowing that has lost its way. This skinny book intended to be read in about an hour or so will have more impact on its reader than a book with 10 times the verbiage which can take weeks to read.
Recommended for anyone considering the purchase, sale or financing of real estate, The Skinny has been strongly endorsed by a wide spectrum of real estate professionals across the United States.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 30
The Housing Crisis! September 17, 2008
Matthew A. Martinez
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This book is brilliant! It should be required reading for every college student in America ... and for anyone interested in owning a home. This book explains how Main Street brought down Wall Street.
Buy this book and you will better understand the Housing Crisis that is now ravaging our country -- and it will only take an hour to read!
Matthew Martinez, Author of
Investing in Apartment Buildings: Create a Reliable Stream of Income and Build Long-Term Wealth
Even I could understand the complex issues in this book! September 11, 2008
Mike Boyne (Bryn Mawr, PA USA)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I came upon this book through my father who is a real estate guy. This book is a godsend for people like me who don't have the time or attention span to read lengthy books on complicated subjects. My dad is a mortgage broker and has been trying to explain the housing crisis to me almost a year now. All I heard was blah, blah, blah. This book is illustrated with stick figures who explain how the housing crisis began. It has serious content mixed with some funny jokes and the stick figures are hilarious. I highly recommend this book to anyone looking to learn more about a major issue in US financial history. Even my dad liked it which really says a lot. He said regardless of the cartoons the material is on point and informative.
Finally! September 18, 2008
G. S. Manheim
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
FINALLY, a book that explains an important topic creatively, thoroughly and with brevity. The Housing Crisis is hugely important as a current economic issue that needs to be fully understood in order to protect oneself today and be better prepared for the future. This book is actually a pleasure to read and you find yourself breezing through it only to discover when you're done that you know a heck of a lot more about the subject-at-hand than you did when you started. I really hope other "The Skinny..." books are in the works.
A must read for anyone old enough to vote September 18, 2008
S. Bates (Connecticut)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is a quick read that provides an easy, fun but serious and comprehensive look at what happened, but more important how to intelligently navigate all the hype served up by alot of heavyhanded sales people that populate the the homebuying landscape. The stick figure format is perfect for our attention challenged society and I look forward more of Jim Randel's stick figure books.
essential reading for all and fun too September 19, 2008
John Davidson
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
A friend of mine who is a real estate broker gave me this book. I thought it was fantastic! In about 45 minutes I understood the whole housing mess, while having a few laughs.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 30
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