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Real Estate
Whether you are buying or selling real estate, refinancing your home mortgage, or need help
preparing documents required by the County, we can assist you with your real estate needs.
In order to convey title to real estate, you must sign a deed transferring your interest in the
property. A deed is necessary whether you are selling property or are giving a piece of property
to someone. The deed must include the legal description, must be executed in front of a notary, and
must be recorded at the register of deeds office. The register of deeds office has certain recording
requirements, which may not be known to people who do not prepare and record deeds on a regular
basis. Our firm can prepare your deed for you. We can be sure that the document is in a proper form
for recordation, and we can record the deed for you. Sometimes people will prepare their own
deeds, but we often find that these “do it yourself” deeds inadvertently are done incorrectly which
creates problems down the road when someone wants to sell the property or to get a mortgage.
Buying and Selling Real Estate
People who are buying or selling Real Estate often have realtors working for them, but you may also
need to have an attorney representing you. As a seller, there are certain legal documents that you
will need to have prepared, including the deed transferring your interest in the property.
As the buyer, you will want to be sure that you are getting good title to the real estate that you
are purchasing. Our office can conduct a title search to be sure that you are getting good title. If
you are borrowing funds from a bank to purchase the property, the bank will require that a title search
be done to ensure that they are protected. Most banks will also require title insurance as a condition
of the loan. Only an attorney can certify good title in order to apply for title insurance. An attorney
can alert you to any problems or risks they see in loan documents or in restrictive covenants.
Many people are choosing to refinance their mortgages, especially with the recent low interest
rates. Some refinances cash out some of the equity in the home to pay off bills or to do home repairs
and improvements. To refinance your mortgage, your bank will most likely require that you use an attorney
to do a title search and to conduct the closing. By doing the title search we make sure that you have good
title to the property. As a part of the closing, we make sure that all of the documents are correct, and
alert you to any problems we may see. We explain the documents to you so you understand the terms of the
transaction. We arrange for and coordinate the payoff of existing loans.
Often when you are dividing a piece of property or are trying to get building permits or permits for septic
systems, County regulations will require that you execute certain documents such as road maintenance
agreements, declarations of covenants, conditions and restrictions regarding septic systems, or declarations
of easement. Often the preparation of these documents requires some search of land records and coordination
with the County Attorney’s office. Our office can prepare these documents for you and assist you with getting
County approval of them.
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