The Virgin Homeowner: The Essential Guide to Owning, Maintaining, and Surviving Your First Home

You've just moved into your first home. Now what do you do? A clear, authoritative, and entertaining initiation into the mysteries of homeownership. Few experiences in life are more unnerving than moving into your first home. All at once you alone are responsible. Not only do you have to keep all systems in working order, but you have to keep disasters at bay. Where is a rookie homeowner to turn? To Janice Papolos and The Virgin Homeownerthe only book written exclusively with the first-timer in mind. Seasoned by her own painfully fresh adventures on the domestic frontier, the author provides reassuring and witty guidance on such subjects as "The Inner Mysteries" (plumbing, electricity, and the exotica of heating plants), "The Uninvited Guests" (from ants and termites to burglars), and "The Age of Innocence" (creating a safe home for your indefatigable child). For all new homeowners who have suspected that their house is smarter than they are, Papolos offers confidence-building advice and information that will leave you ready for anything.