Whether it is for your business or for your home, the purchase or sale of real estate is likely to be one of the largest transactions of your life. A common misconception is that it is not necessary to get an attorney involved in a transaction until you are “ready to go to contract”. You should get your attorney involved as soon as possible. An attorney hired before you list a property for sale can review and revise the contract with your real estate broker, advise you of the full range of fees and expenses that you are likely to incur and may be able to identify and resolve issues (such as missing certificates of occupancy or unreleased mortgages) that otherwise might not come up until you are under contract and time becomes critical. Similarly, an attorney hired before you make an offer to purchase can help insure that your offer includes the necessary contingencies (such as mortgage, engineering inspection and oil tank test contingencies) and can advise you on the full range of fees and expenses that you are likely to incur.
Once an offer is made and accepted, whether representing a buyer or seller, it is the attorney’s function to make sure that the contract contains the appropriate contingencies, representations and safeguards to protect his client. The nature of those contingencies, representations and safeguards will vary for every transaction, so it is crucial to have an attorney who will treat each transaction as a unique event, and not try to apply a “cookie-cutter” approach. Attorney Smith personally prepares every contract for his clients that are selling property and personally review and revises every contract for his clients that are buying property. In this way, every transaction is treated as a unique event.
Once the contracts are negotiated and signed, the attorney’s role turns to making sure that his client complies with the terms of the contract. From the seller’s end this involves resolving any outstanding title or municipal issues, calculating closing adjustments, obtaining payoffs for any outstanding mortgage and preparing the closing documents. On the purchaser’s side, the attorney assists the purchaser in dealing with their bank, keeps track of critical deadlines (suchas the mortgage contingency date) making sure that title is clear and that the buyer is getting exactly what he bargained for. Once the closing is scheduled, a buyer’s attorney needs to work closely with the attorneys for the seller and the lender to determine what checks the buyer needs to closing. There should be no surprises at the closing table. Attorney Smith personally handles every purchase and sale from start to finish, so that there will be no surprises.
From his offices in Mt. Kisco, New York and Newtown, Connecticut, Attorney Smith is able to represent clients for the purchase, sale or financing of real estate in the New York Counties of Westchester, Putnam and Dutchess as well as the five boroughs of New York City and Fairfield County, Connecticut. Contact us for a free, no obligation consultation and a flat rate price quotation for residential transactions.