Any legal situation where property is involved is fraught with danger and can end up costing you thousands of dollars if you are not careful. So when you are buying or selling property, it is wise to engage the services of a real estate attorney to protect your bottom line.
So what can a real estate attorney actually do to protect your rights, when you are buying or selling property?
Title and Document Searches
When you buy or sell a property, a title search needs to be performed to ensure that the person who is actually selling the property, has the legal right to do so. This protects any co-owners from illegally losing ownership of a property and of course, the buyer does not want the legal ownership of their property challenged at some later date.
There are also a number of other document searches that need to be performed, to safeguard the interests of both the buyer and the seller. For example the seller needs to ensure that the buyer has the financials in place to pay for the purchase.
The buyer needs to have a valuation and an inspection report to ensure that the property is worth the asking price, as well as land and council searches to ensure that there are no rezoning issues likely to cause lifestyle problems in the future.
Contract Exchanges, Completions and Financials
There are a number of contracts that need to be written, signed, exchanged and submitted when you buy or sell real estate. It is so easy to miss one of these steps or forget to have one of the contracts signed, both of which prolong the settlement process.
An attorney also keeps track of all the financials of the settlement process, liaising with the financial institution to set up a date and time for the final settlement. They also make sure that all document searches have been completed and all the right contracts are signed and submitted, so that settlement can proceed as planned.
Streamlining the Entire Process
Real estate attorneys are experts in real estate law and make sure that the entire settlement process runs smoothly. They can deal with any problems that might occur and give you legal advice, if necessary.
They also normally use updated software, such as the REVEAL tool from Infotrack, which helps to speed the process along by making it easy for attorneys to visualize all the documents and data collected during the settlement process.
Hiring a real estate attorney gives you peace of mind knowing that if any problems do occur during the transaction process, you have an experienced legal representative on hand who can protect your rights, all the way down the line.
This is a Guest Post
I have never considered engaging the services of a real estate attorney. However, as the wife and I give some thought to adding a second rental property to our portfolio, this provides some food for thought.
My recent post The Business of Family – A SavvyReview and Giveaway
Great post.
Great article ! And this is so informative and useful for everyone. And I think real estate attorney is Essential for buying or selling property because main reason is that he save your money and time.Also solve Property Law related issues, Settlement Process that you never know. A good real estate attorney can complete your deal within time limit without any stress.
Thanks for your article about real estate and attorneys. It can be a really good idea to hire a real estate attorney if you are moving or buying a property that has an HOA. There can be some bylaws that can be dealbreakers for many individuals. An attorney can point out some of these conditions so you can make a more informed decision.
Hiring a real estate attorney may be an added expense but you may need to consider getting one under certain situations. You may need to get professional legal assistance if the property you are buying comes with a hefty price tag or you don't entirely trust the other side. You may also want to hire a real estate lawyer if you are buying or selling a house with a non-family member or the property you are buying is in probate or foreclosure. Some states also require lawyers to be involved in some aspects of the sale.
Very informative post. There are so many good reasons why it is wise to hire a real estate attorney for property deals. The real estate attorney can be very helpful in many ways when buying or selling properties.
My dad is thinking to shift his business office. That's why he need sell his old office place and want to purchase/rent a new land in a commercial area. I will share this post with my father and hope it will be helpful for him to take the decision.
Thanks for the valuable post.
I totally agree with this! I almost reached the point of bankruptcy when I started venturing into real estate way back, then I seek advice from the experts. Believe me when I say everything paid off very well! Up until now, I'm can still call this investment a success. I learned a lot from these lawyers that I started investing into stocks exchange also.