Tag Archives: real estate attorney

Selecting a Real Estate Attorney—Some Advice from the Other Side

Uncategorized, ,

In my over forty years of practicing real estate law in Massachusetts, I have had clients in all sizes and shapes. Many of my clients have been satisfied with my services, others not so much. When I have dissected what went wrong with the clients who were less than enchanted, I found that the old “C” word, communication, led to most of the disappointments on both sides.

With that inmid, I would submit the following set of rules to follow when considering attorneys to assist you in what will, perhaps, be the biggest single investment you will make in your lives.

   1. Ask the prospective attorney the following questions:

       a. Is real estate you primary area of practice? It seems so obvious, but many times you will have counsel who is “learning while you learn”.  This is generally not a good thing.

       b. Will you do this on a fixed fee basis or on an hourly basis? Many seasoned attorneys are not afraid to quote a fixed fee. Others will say “hourly” but will consider a “ceiling” on the amount of the fee. Some will day a fixed fee, with the understanding that if the deal goes way off the tracks, the parties may revisit the fee situation to assure that the attorney is not disadvataged when events really changed in the course of the transaction. In any event, too many people enter into a professional relationship with an attorney with no clear understanding of what the matter will cost, and that can lead to disatsifaction on both sides.

       c. Whatever is agreed upon for fees, enter into a fee agreement with your attorney. This should set forth the amount of your retainer, if any, the hoursly rate if that is the way the transaction is structured and any other important aspects of the attorney’s representation.

       d. Find out in advance if you can expect to be dealing with the attorney you slected most of the time. or if you will be dealing with an Associate or a Paralegal. My firm, Topkins & Bevans, is small, and one of my marketing approaches is “I am the A Team, and there is no B Team”. Other lawyers operate on a different basis. Find out in advance so you will not be frustrated because Mr. X or Ms Y is not returning your calls or emails.

     2. Once you have established the rules wth your attorney, learn to live with them. Attorneys, like any other professionals, cannot manage through exception. Realize that the attorney has other clients, and that sometimes you will have to wait for a response.

     3. Try to listen to the advice your attorney gives you. AsI said abopve, the purchase or sale of real estate is one of the most important things you will do in your financial life. Once you find the right attorney, listen to what he or she has to say. Many of us have been through thousands of transaction, and we know our crsft. Listen to what we tell you; we are on your side.

Getting the deal done—Common Goals almost Always Make People representing both sides “Comrades in Arms”

Uncategorized, , ,

I was speaking with a fellow Massachusetts attorney yesterday about our practices. He is a partner in a downtown Boston firm; my firm is mid-sized and mostly suburban, with an office on Newbury Street in Boston, but one office in the Western suburb of Waltham and one office in the Southern suburb of Braintree. After we spent the better part of an hour hammering out the terms of a purchase and sale agreement for commercial property in Boston, Massachusetts, we agreed that he would do the changes in the latest draft, send it along to me for final review, and we could sign things up before the end of this month.

When we finished out work, and we exchanged pleasantries about how smoothly our negotiations had gone, and how we had developed a basically fair deal for both sides, he commented to me that this result is why he has enjoyed practicing real estate law so much. He said the common enterprise which followed the negotiations makes real estate transactions different from all other areas of law. His point was that when you have a willing Buyer and a willing Seller, and we perform required due diligence through inspections and confirmations with governmental authorities, we have a “deal” and all sides are working together to get the sale closed and the buyer moved in.

Upon reflection, it occurred to me that this was the charm of real estate work in general. After the preliminary discussions, and offers and counter-offers, the deal gets done, and both sides are generally pleased with the outcome. This is not the sale of a business where the Seller knows of some changes in revenue projections which mean that the Buyer may be overpaying. This is not a litigation where there is a winner and a loser.

We are engaged in a professional where everyone can win and walk away smiling. I have been impressed with how many realtors comment about the great feeling they experience when the deal is closed, and the Sellers and the Buyers coalesce into discussions about maintenance issues or reliable artisans and contractors to use.

So, at a “feel-good” time of the year, after we have thanked our young men and women for defending our country on Veterans Day, and prepare to thank a higher being for the joys of family and home and good friendship on Thanksgiving, we can also have good feelings about our profession. Each in our own way, we make the dream of home ownership a reality for people every day. And we do it together, both sides working together to try to make things as manageable as possible for Buyers and Sellers who have justifiably relied upon us for assistance. I salute us all.

The Yellow Sheet in My Middle Drawer–You want to be on the “plus” side with me (and everyone else you deal with)

Uncategorized, ,

I have been practicing real estate law in Massachusetts for more than 40 years. In that period, I have participated in probably 25,000 or so real estate transactions. Early in the game, I realized that some opposing counsel, realtors, appraisers, mortgage people and other real estate professionals were cooperative, honest and/or enterprising. Others were dishonest, obstreperous and/or downright lazy.

Since Boston is in many ways a small town, I started keep a yellow sheet (now there are about 200 of these) in the middle drawer of my desk. As I dealt with people on deals, I made a determination that they were either “plus” or “minus”. I then divided my yellow sheet with a line, and placed the “plus” people on the left side and the “minus” people on the right side, and then put my sheet back into the middle drawer.

It has been amazing to me how helpful my yellow sheets have been through the years. It is more amazing how many times I have had dealings with people from 5, 10 or 15 years ago on new transactions. I check my sheets to see if they are there, and if they are “plus” or “minus”.

If they are “plus”, I bend over backwards to make the deal work. I accommodate people with extensions for financing, closing and inspections. I travel far and wide to make their life easier. They have earned this type of treatment because they treated me similarly in the past.

If they are “minus”, they are probably going to have a harder time speaking with me, and when they do, they may not like what they hear, I will never be unprofessional, but I will certainly not walk the extra mile to help them out. Sometimes, I will have an advantage, and if the people are “minus”, I will use attempt to use it to their detriment.

The moral of this story is that the real estate community in almost every city is smaller than people think. You may have an edge in some transactions. In others, you will be coming from off the pace. Guide your behavior on the basis that you will probably be dealing with the people on the other side at another time, with another deal. Make yourself a “plus” and you will always have a chance to do a great job for the person you are representing. Don’t ever make a long-lasting enemy in our business. The price you may pay is just not worth it.

The Blase Mortgage Lender–How Much Longer Can we Put Up with This?

closing, , , , ,

Recently, I was representing a young couple buying their first home with an FHA mortgage. The Purchase and Sale Agreement was signed in early March. The closing was set forth for late April. Plenty of time for the Lender. The written mortgage commitment issued in late March with standard conditions. My clients easily fulfilled them.

THREE days before the scheduled closing, the Lender informed my client that “they were backed up and all closing were being pushed back for FIVE days.” The Seller had scheduled a day off for the original closing date to do the final walk-through. My clients are looking a being homeless if there any any further delays. There were no suggestions of underwriting problems. The Lender was “backed up” and that was all there was to it.

When you consider all of the things that all real estate professionals need to do to have a successful closing, this “walk away” approach by the Lender is simply not acceptable. The SELLER in my case wants to be paid (at least a per diem for the delay). My clients are in jeopardy of not having a roof over their heads. Do you think there is any way that the Lender will “chip in”” on this? Personally, I do not.

As an industry, we really need to develop ways to make the Lender more accountable for this type of behavior. I would suggest substantial fines for each time it happens, some of which could be paid to FNMA/FHLMC and some which can be paid to the Borrowers. Maybe, the state Banking Commission should suspend licenses of Lenders who do this more than “X” times in a given period. I am a real estate attorney in Massachusetts, and in our state, the attorney conducts the closing, I am fed up with the insouciance of the Lender. We all suffer when closings do not take place, and allowing the Lenders to run “roughshod” over our industry is unacceptable.

I would appreciate your view and suggestions. In this time of reduced activity, every closing is important. Lenders must be hed accountable for not realizing how many people they hurt when they are “backed up”. Hire some more people!!!Work longer hours!!! Stand up and be responsible!!!