RULE #1 ---> DON'T SIGN ANYTHING YOUR ATTORNEY
HAS NOT SEEN
Put A Real Estate Attorney On Your Side
Whether you’re buying or selling a home, a real estate attorney can make sure your interests are protected. For those considering a transaction either with or without a real estate broker or agent, it is particularly important to engage an attorney. No other participant in the transaction has an obligation to work for you that compares to the obligation of your attorney.
If you are selling your home, you want the highest possible price and the fewest possible complications. You also want to avoid potential liabilities after the sale. An attorney can help you meet your goals.
A real estate attorney is the only member of your home-buying team qualified to give you legal advice. If you hire a real estate lawyer before you sign a purchase contract, you'll be making sure that your home-buying experience goes as smoothly as possible and that potential problems are resolved before closing. Why risk using a title agency and hoping no legal problems arise?
Title insurance secures your legal claim to the property you purchase and protects you against title "defects" -- legal rights to a property claimed by someone else. Defects can surface even after you've closed on the property. Furthermore, numerous circumstances can arise that keep you from having a “marketable” title and, thus, can hamper your ability to sell the property in the future, With title insurance, the title insurer not only pays the costs if you're ever forced to defend your ownership in court, but also covers loss if the title defects can't be settled.
Buying a lender's title insurance policy is required for obtaining a mortgage. This protects the lender against any title problems. To protect your interests, you'll also need owner's title insurance.
Rare is the real estate transaction that is completed without some give and take between the buyer and seller. You probably won’t want to accept the seller’s initial asking price. And the seller might not accept your counter offer. Negotiations are an integral part at arriving at the best deal.
In real estate transactions, the closing is the event at which you and the seller sign all of the documents to complete the transaction. The usually occurs in an office. While you and the seller will do all of the signing, others will be in the room to assist, including a closing agent. The closing agent might be your real estate attorney or the seller’s real estate attorney. Others present might include your real estate attorney, the seller’s real estate attorney, a mortgage loan officer, your real estate agent and the seller’s real estate agent.