patrick.net

If Patrick gets sued by Realtors, or any housing shills, we should all donate for his defense fund, I know I will.

I ordered my copy today. I can't wait to read it.

when is the 2nd edition coming out?

Seymour says

I bought elliemae's via kindle last week; only half way through it and already found a buyer for a hardcopy based on my recommendation

Thanks. My book has a specific audience, while Patrick's appeals to a larger audience. Let's make his a best seller. :)

ok and mine too...

Congratulations on this publication, Patrick. I hope it turns out to be a success on all fronts.

Oxygen says

when is the 2nd edition coming out?

After I get the first wave of corrections and suggestions from the first edition! I plan to keep it well updated.

OK, I'll do the Kindle thing for $8. Might take a couple of days.

Should I also look into the iPad bookstore, whatever that's called?

yeah, itunes with ibooks. Ibooks take 30 percent cut from your sales. You can sell it there for $8.

I was going through the motions of publishing on Kindle, when they presented me with the usual legalese horror to accept without objection, and I decided I'd better actually read it. This gem really stood out:

1 Exclusivity. When you include a Digital Book in KDP Select, you give us the exclusive right to sell and distribute your Digital Book in digital format while your book is in KDP Select. During this period of exclusivity, you cannot sell or distribute, or give anyone else the right to sell or distribute, your Digital Book (or a book that is substantially similar), in digital format in any territory where you have rights.

WTF? Why would I ever give them exclusivity and give up all alternative sales channels? This means I could not even sell my own digital book on my own site.

Then there were other questionable terms that made it sound like they could give the book away for free when they want, and how they could also change the terms at any time and I agree to whatever the hell they come up with.

Fortunately, it looks like it's possible for me to create a Kindle-formatted version on my own and not give up the rights to sell on other platforms. Not entirely sure of that though. The Kindle formatting software may have equally ridiculous terms.

Let me know if you have any advice about creating a Kindle file.

Wow, Amazon's credibility is plummeting fast with me.

They have a line in the terms that says you can contact them with feedback:

1 Agreement Acceptance. You accept this Agreement and agree to be bound by its terms by either (a) clicking agree or accept where you're given the option to do so or (b) by using the Program, or any part of it. If you don't accept the terms, you are not entitled to use the Program. We welcome feedback on this Agreement at https://kdp.amazon.com/self-publishing/contact-us

But when you go to that URL to tell them just how much their exclusivity demand sucks, they won't let you do anything until you first accept all their terms -- the very same freakin contract that I'm telling them I do not agree to.

Time to short Amazon stock?

Amazon is the neighborhood bully.

Apparently when you are the market leader you get to make all the rules. For most publishers, the cost of not being in the Kindle marketplace is too high...

Kindle reads PDFs though, right?

I'm hoping I can publish on Kindle without giving up any rights.

Kindle reads PDFs though, right?

Not all kindles. Kindle fire does. Nook is better in this aspect: (a) you can read pdf and other formats; (b) you can use sd cards.

Kindle reads PDFs though, right?

I'm hoping I can publish on Kindle without giving up any rights.

I wonder if Nook would be better regarding your rights.

Let me know if you have any advice about creating a Kindle file.

On your createspace page, choose the kindle version. but don't choose kindle select. you can kindle without it.

I don't know Patrick, if congress, the president, parents & even my wife are conspiring against me (Chapt. 2), I think I may have bigger problems than owning some real estate. Perhaps a little too much hyperbole?

Not hyperbole at all!

Has Congress or the President ever suggested that promoting mortgage debt is a bad thing? I don't think so.

What do your parents think about your buying a house? Ask them.

Same for your wife.

In the large majority of cases, they all want you to buy and don't understand (or don't want to understand) the idea that you might be far better off financially by renting.

Patrick says, "In the large majority of cases, they all want you to buy and don't understand (or don't want to understand) the idea that you might be far better off financially by renting."

This was almost exactly my experience of the last seven years. My parents and friends swore up and down that I was throwing away money on rent when I could be building equity by buying. I gave up explaining my position and the fact that the RE market was bubbled after a few years. Honestly tho, if my wife wasn't on board with my reasoning it would have been much harder to wait it out and rent. A few coworkers were pushed into big expensive home purchases by their wives and are now renters again, having been foreclosed. All this despite making six figure salaries.
Your book is very aptly named.
Thumbs up!

Same for your wife.

For the next version, you might want this chapter to be entitled 'Your Spouse.' Albeit, I haven't read the contents of the chapter but I would imagine similar arguments come from husbands. I've got a friend whose husband doesn't want kids yet because he wants to be a homeowner first! Personally speaking, I have a husband who has no interest in financial decisions but has always dreamed of being a 'homeowner'--both due to pride and wanting to customize his garage...

Plus, the label makes it sound like a wife is not an equal contributer in 1) the household income or 2) the financial decisions of the family.

It's not politically correct to say so, and of course there are exceptions, but even today a house is generally seen as something provided by a husband for a wife -- and that's in just about every culture on earth.

The characters in "Suzanne Researched This" are playing on these traditional roles because that's what's in people's brains:

http://www.youtube.com/embed/hPIxrzmatq0

It's not politically correct to say so, and of course there are exceptions, but even today a house is generally seen as something provided by a husband for a wife -- and that's in just about every culture on earth.

True that. But she still gets half your stuff if she divorces you.

Just ordered a book Patrick. :)

cheers.

Ordered your book over the weekend...I have learned many a lesson over the past few years reading here...looking forward to the book. Thx.

Well, that title does make it sound like you aim to provide your male readers with ammo against their wife's irrational demands to spend their husbands money on a big house. I just think there are more exceptions to that notion than you believe (like as in it's not true in real life anymore) but this book really isn't about that.

freak80 says

True that. But she still gets half your stuff if she divorces you.

Aren't both entitled to half of everything they acquired during their marriage? So if they contributed equally (or the wife contributed more), the husband wouldn't be 'losing' anything.

jessica says

Well, that title does make it sound like you aim to provide your male readers with ammo against their wife's irrational demands to spend their husbands money on a big house. I just think there are more exceptions to that notion than you believe (like as in it's not true in real life anymore) but this book really isn't about that.

I think it still is somewhat more than half true. About 2/3 of men earn more their wives in the US.

And I think if you flip it around, you'd probably find that about 2/3 of women are the ones driving the purchase of a house. But I'm just guessing there, from my experience living in this culture.

And yes, the book is all about ammo. That what it is, really: a self-defense course for people being pressured to buy. The wife thing is just one part of it.

Make a DRM-free ebook (pdf, Kindle formatted, whatever) for the same price as the physical book and I'll buy one immediately.

Patrick,

Do you think there'll be momentum for more items for sale (similar to xkcd)?

http://store.xkcd.com/

you already have a book, may be you can add more merchandise.

just a thought.

I think it still is somewhat more than half true. About 2/3 of men earn more their wives in the US.

How many of that 2/3 are the sole wage earner? Women making 85% of their husband's wage probably don't like to throw their money down the crapper either...

And I think if you flip it around, you'd probably find that about 2/3 of women are the ones driving the purchase of a house. But I'm just guessing there, from my experience living in this culture.

Maybe but I just gave you two examples of where a wife had to provide the arguments against buying. So in my demographic, this doesn't seem all that true to me. Does that matter? Only if you might offend someone in your intended audience.

And yes, the book is all about ammo. That what it is, really: a self-defense course for people being pressured to buy. The wife thing is just one part of it.

Agreed, I just wouldn't want your other ammo to be ignored by some people in your potential audience because of a possible interpretation of a (as you say) somewhat politically incorrect statement....

I'd be delighted if there were.

I have bumper stickers, but maybe should branch out into posters and clothing.

I think it would be funny to create OVERPRICED stickers for people to put on for-sale signs, but I'd probably get in trouble for that...

jessica says

Agreed, I just wouldn't want your other ammo to be ignored by some people in your potential audience because of a possible interpretation of a (as you say) somewhat politically incorrect statement....

I had my own wife review the book, and our marriage survived.

I don't want to offend women, but I honestly believe a lot of mortgage debt is created by realtors pressuring wives to pressure husbands. Just like in that video.

How can I put it without lying about what I really think?

From the female perspective--We were in the process of relocating out of state and I was the one that found this site and presented it's arguments for renting vs. buying. However, we both struggled with the "emotional" arguments for home..or rather...mortgage ownership...and caved and bought after a year. Honestly, the emotional card to buy is the most difficult to overcome, because we had all the head knowledge not to. Fortunately, for us, we were able to take advantage of this crazy AZ market...and were able to sell, and get all our $$ back. Didn't make any, but didn't loose any. I certainly would not recommend the path we took, but we learned some valuable life lessons in the process. Happy to be renting again...

It's not politically correct to say so, and of course there are exceptions, but even today a house is generally seen as something provided by a husband for a wife -- and that's in just about every culture on earth.
The characters in "Suzanne Researched This" are playing on these traditional roles because that's what's in people's brains:

Shutup woman, I just came into the kitchen for a beer at half-time.

A little more background on men and women in buying houses:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/07/garden/07men.html?pagewanted=all

Married couples make up the largest group of new home buyers. Next, according to research from the National Association of Realtors, are single women, who in the last 12 months represented 21 percent of home buyers; single men were just 10 percent. That gap has opened up in the last decade, said Paul Bishop, vice president for research at the association.

Those women want that house. The men, not so much. By a factor of more than 2 to 1.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/nVGxJAd0iYs

Men are supposed to be the providers - the hunter/gatherers. If you don't buy your wife a house you're a useless piece of shit who wasn't good enough to marry her in the first place - if only the good one hadn't gotten away....

Women are emotional when it comes to home buying. And men have no ammunition against emotion.

Any closer to a digital edition yet?

I still don't see how to publish on Kindle without giving up rights to publish anywhere else.

I'm tempted just to give away a PDF that has maybe 25% of the book in it, and let people copy that however they want as advertising for the paper book.

I love paper books.

Call it Crazy says

It's not JUST home buying... they are emotional with every other issue of life!!

Oh, so you think I'm an emotional mess? sniff.... you hurt my feelings! I can't do anything right! I never should have answered that post!

Other people answered my posts without making me cry... don't know why you chose to pick on me! I'm calling all my girlfriends and telling them that you said I wasn't good enough! (heavy sob)...

I still don't see how to publish on Kindle without giving up rights to publish anywhere else.

I'm tempted just to give away a PDF that has maybe 25% of the book in it, and let people copy that however they want as advertising for the paper book.

I love paper books.

Just a thought, but would it be bad to only sell on Amazon? I don't like their rights restrictions, but then at the same time it's just for this one book.

Any restriction on where I can sell my own work is not acceptable.

I'm actually kind of amazed anyone puts up with it.

I don't want to offend women, but I honestly believe a lot of mortgage debt is created by realtors pressuring wives to pressure husbands. Just like in that video.

And just like in the book of Genesis.

I wish this could go mainstream, but unlikely. Just this weekend I was out with friends and talk about the house next door (I rent) being up for sale for 350k with 10k in taxes was viewed as a "good price." I was trying to make a joke about it being a "bargain," but to my disappointment, they took it seriously. Keep in mind this house sold for 195k in 2001, and taxes have more than doubled since then.

Sadly, not informed enough to realize a 3000/month expense is far from a "bargain."