Home Real Estate Guide to Finding Real Estate Attorney

Guide to Finding Real Estate Attorney

Guide to Finding Real Estate Attorney

What Does a Real Estate Attorney Do?
When looking to purchase or sell a home, you must amass a team of advisors and professionals to expedite the transaction. This team should invariably include a real estate attorney. Your realtor, who serves as the foundation of your advisory team, helps you find the right property, negotiate the price of the home and establishes a closing date for you and your family. Your prospective real estate attorney, on the other hand, will review the offers you create or receive and ensures that your duties are clearly defined and your rights protected. 
Real estate attorneys are legal professionals who facilitate real estate transactions. If you are in the process of buying or selling a piece of property, a real estate attorney will expedite the process by ensuring that you adhere to your city and state’s unique real estate laws. Moreover, real estate attorneys will illuminate on the laws and intricacies attached to the transaction. 
In general, a real estate attorney will help with the following if you are in the mist of buying a home:
The real estate attorney will help you understand the purchases contract attached with your real estate transaction. Under this responsibility, the real estate attorney will advise you on how to transfer the property’s title. 
Your real estate attorney will ensure that there are no covenants, liens, easements etc. registered against the property that would ultimately block your use of it. 
Real estate attorneys prepare and register all the legal documents associated with the real estate purchase. 
Your real estate attorney will clarify and elucidate on the terms of your mortgage. These legal professionals will work with your bank, and if necessary, modify the provisions attached to them. 
Real estate attorneys will scrutinize the adjustments, including all taxes owed on the property and all utility costs paid prior to the closing. 
Real estate attorneys will attend the closing and review all the documents that you will be required to sign to complete the transaction. 
Real estate attorneys are responsible for arranging title insurance protections to safeguard you from the losses associated with title defects. 
Real estate attorneys will ensure that you receive valid ownership registrations subject only to the liabilities you have agreed to and accepted.
If you are selling a property, a real estate attorney will help you with the following:
When selling a property, a real estate attorney will review all documents and prepare the purchase and sales agreement for you.
Real estate attorneys will prepare the deed and power of attorney if applicable or necessary.
Real estate attorneys will evaluate and subsequently resolve all issues relating to the title.
Real estate attorneys will attend the closing and review all the documents you will be required to sign.
A real estate attorney will arrange for the transfer of security deposits and insurance certificates if required. 
Fees Associated with Real Estate Attorneys:
In most instances, legal fees associated with hiring a real estate attorney will be higher when you purchase a home (the role of a buyer’s real estate attorney is far more extensive). That being said, the bulk of real estate attorneys will range from $500 to $2,000 regardless of your role as a buyer or seller. 
The precise fee arrangement will change between individual real estate attorneys. Some real estate attorneys will charge a flat fee for specific services rendered, while other real estate attorneys will charge by the hour. If you hire a real estate that charges be the hire, be sure to understand what the final cost is and insist on regular accounting for all charges associated with the legal help. Frequently, a real estate attorney can estimate costs related to real estate transactions. You must remember that even if your deal falls through, you will invariably owe your real estate attorney for services rendered. 
How Do I Select a Good Lawyer?
If you have not procured a list of prospective real estate attorneys, a great place to start your search is on the Internet. Internet search engines, such as GOOGLE and Yahoo! are effective (and free) resources to compile a list of real estate attorneys in your area. 
Once you have gathered a list of real estate attorneys in your area, you must take a few minutes to ensure that you are looking for the right kind of legal specialist. You must keep in mind, that there are several types of real estate lawyers. Therefore, you must find a real estate attorney who specializes in what you are looking for. Subcategories of real estate law will include:
Residential properties
Commercial properties
Industrial
Agricultural
Issues involving landlord and tenants
Construction law
After pinpointing your specific need and subsequently finding real estate attorneys in your area, you should find out everything you can about each individual. This information is crucial when screening and whittling down your list of real estate attorneys. To gather additional information on real estate attorneys in your area, do the following:
Inspect the biographies and Web sites for each real estate attorney’s respective law firm. Do the individuals have expertise in the area of real estate law that you require? Do they have information on their sites that benefit you?
You must hire a real estate attorney with at least a few years’ experience. When viewing each individual’s biographical information be sure to take note of their years’ experience in the field. Experience denotes an advanced understanding, which in turn, ensures the delivery of sound legal advice.
Real estate attorneys who represent developers, contractors, landlords and banks are not permitted to represent consumers with problems in related areas. Therefore, if you are a consumer or borrower, inspect the profile for the real estate attorney and their attached firm to see who they primarily represent. If you are confused about this, you should contact the real estate attorney’s firm and find out. 
View lists of representative clients. Are these the types of clients that you would want your real estate attorney representing? 
Conduct additional Internet searches using the lawyer’s name and keywords such as “referrals” “reviews” or “articles” to find even more information on the individual. 
Ask friends or family for advice or referrals regarding their experiences with legal help. 
As a basic sense, there are two types of real estate attorneys: litigators, who hand lawsuits and transactional lawyers who handle present contract matters. Although some real estate attorneys will do both, the majority of real estate attorneys will specialize in one field or the other. If you are involved in a lawsuit, you must search for litigators. For all other situations, you should look for a transactional real estate attorney.  
Real estate attorneys fill a unique role in the legal world. The process of buying and selling real estate can be quite complicated and you must ensure that your rights are protected. If you need the services of a real estate attorney, there are a few things that you should know. 
Some real estate transactions do not require attorneys for real estate; however, for your own piece of mind, you may want someone to review the contracts. There are real estate attorneys that only handle small matters, but there are also attorneys for real estate that only handle business clients. Your needs will determine which type of real estate attorneys you require. 
Attorneys for real estate also handle disputes involving property, such as landlord/tenant disputes. Many times, these types of cases are handled in small claims court, but if the value exceeds the maximum amount allowed in small claims, real estate attorneys are often required. If you have several rental properties, it’s best to have a real estate attorney that can take care of all your legal matters. 
In some cases as a landlord, you may require eviction paperwork or need to sue someone for back rent or damages. These actions do not require an attorney, but you will have a better chance of maximizing the award from the court with one. However, you will have to consider the costs of the real estate attorney to see if the difference is worth it.
If you are a tenant and feel as though you have been unfairly treated by your landlord, contacting real estate attorneys can give you satisfaction. Many landlords bully their tenants because they think their tenants are not aware of the laws. Attorneys for real estate hear of these problems all the time and they know the best way to proceed in such matters. 
More about Real Estate Attorney
A Real Estate Attorney is a lawyer, barred by the state, that helps clients, mainly, in the purchase and sale of residential and commercial real estate.  Real Estate is governed by state law and, as such, your Real Estate Lawyer must be barred in the state  where the property is situated.  Real Estate, and other forms of property, are referred to as Res in legal matters.  A Real Estate Attorney not only handles the purchase and sale of real estate but will also be ale to help clients with foreclosures, landlord/tenant situations, and discrimination in housing that violates the Civil Rights Act.
One of the most important things to remember when purchasing real estate is that the real estate agent represents the seller of the real estate, not the buyer.  If you are a buyer of real estate it is imperative that you are aware that the real estate agent is not looking out for your best interest.  The real estate agent is paid by getting a commission from the sale of the property.  The higher the price the real estate gets you to pay for the real estate the greater the commission the real estate agent gets.  This is a major reason why you want a real estate attorney working for you.  A real estate attorney will be able to negotiate properly with the home seller and the real estate agent.  The real estate agent will also be able to gather information on home sale prices in the area based on similar criteria and argue the best price for you.  
The real estate attorney will also be helpful in retaining the services of reputable and respectable home inspectors, help you in closings and hire the right title insurance companies.  The way that titles, liens, and covenants are filed are different in each state and it is important that you have a real estate attorney that is knowledgeable of the specific local filing system so that you can be sure that the property that you are purchasing is clear of any incumberances that may limit your ability to make changes to your property or otherwise use the real estate for a specific purpose.
A Real Estate Attorney is also a good idea in negotiating a proper mortgage with a lender.  Getting the right terms in a mortgage can be an essential part of any real estate purchase.  The increase in a tenth of a percentage point in your yearly interest can ultimately lead to thousands of excess dollars that you will have to pay over the course of time.  A real estate attorney will be able to help you find the best lenders for your situation and advise you on how to proceed properly.  One of the major reasons for the recent financial collapse was predatory lending.  In these situations individuals would unknowingly agree to unscrupulous lending.  A real estate attorney will be able to read the fine print and understand the legalize so that you don’t get caught in the same situation as so many unfortunate homeowners over the last half decade.  As a result of the financial collapse and housing crises housing prices are at a 31 year low and it is a great time to invest in real estate.
A real estate attorney will be able to help individuals who are being subjected to foreclosure by their creditors.  By hiring a real estate attorney you may be able to avoid foreclosure by re-negotiating mortgages, and at the very least, the real estate attorney will be able to keep you in your home for a reasonable period of time during the foreclosure proceedings.  A real estate attorney will also be a good resource for finding a bankruptcy attorney or other legal specialist that can help you with matters that coincide with foreclosure.
In landlord/tenant situations a real estate attorney may be necessary for both parties.  If an individual is facing eviction or has complaints about housing a  real estate attorney will fight for his, or her, clients rights under warranties of habitability and other rights granted to a tenant, especially violations of the fair housing act.  As a landlord you will want a real estate attorney to help draft lease agreements and appraise the landlord of his or her obligations such as duties to repair, keep areas safe, and the proper way to deal with evictions.
If you are in need of a real estate attorney you have a number of options at your fingertips.  You can look through the internet, periodicals, newspapers, magazines or call your local bar association to find reputable real estate attorneys in your area who are in good standing.
One of the best ways to find a real estate attorney is through word of mouth.  You can ask friends and family if they have any recommendations, what that real estate attorney has done for them and other pertinent information.
Additionally you can go to the top of the laws.com website for access to the laws.com referral service.  By inputting your name, contact information, location and the kind of real estate matter you are involved with you will be contacted by a representative from laws.com with information about real estate attorneys in your area that can meet your needs.