WHAT DOES THE ATTORNEY DO?
Usually the attorney will do the following, however, verify that your attorney will do all of the below before hiring him/her:
- Review the contract to ensure all terms are within guidelines of HUD (Department of Housing and Urban Development). If needed, the necessary changes will be made to comply with HUD. This will help avoid any last minutes issues with the lender issuing a final loan approval for the Buyer.
- Order title search on the property, prepare title commitment and provide a copy to the Buyer’s Attorney and Lender/Mortgage Broker.
- * Should any “clouds” appear on title, Seller’s Attorney will trouble shoot these items so that a “clear” title can be provided to the required parties.
- Order a payoff on any outstanding loans on the property. The funds needed to pay off the loan will then be sent via over night mail service the day of the closing to the appropriate party.
- >Cooperate with the Buyer’s lender to provide any documentation necessary in order to expedite the Buyers final loan approval. This includes but is not limited to a copy the sales contract, declarations & by-laws, title commitment, condominium insurance certificate, etc.
- Preparation of all the necessary legal documents which include the Bill of Sale, ALTA Statement, Affidavit of Title, Power of Attorney, 1099 Statement, Deed and Closing Statement.
- Schedule the closing date, time and location. Provide email notification to all parties of the closing date, time and location.
- Attend closing to finalize the transaction between the parties, resolve any remaining unresolved contract issues, review and sign “Settlement Statement” on Sellers behalf.
The above list is IF everything goes perfectly. If it doesn’t and the contract needs to be cancelled, earnest money needs to be refunded, etc. the attorney will handle these items as well, usually for no additional charge. This is why it’s crucial to have a good Real Estate attorney as part of your team.
HOW MUCH DOES THE ATTORNEY COST?
Typically in our area a real estate attorney charges between $900 – $1600 depending on the time of the year and how busy they are. You do not pay them up front. Rather their fee is part of your closing cost and is paid at closing. If a contract is cancelled due to an inspection issue, etc. you generally do not have to pay the attorney.
OUR FAVORITE REAL ESTATE ATTORNEYS
Here are our favorite Real Estate attorneys:
Courtney Lane 623 South Main Street Great Barrington, MA 01230 Office:413.528.5040 Email:[email protected] | Adrienne Arnold Lazan Glover & Puciloski, LLP 785 Main Street Great Barrington, MA 01230 Tel (413) 644-0200 Cell (413) 429-5561 Fax (413) 644-0201 Email: [email protected] | Emily Zelenović, Esq. Law Office of Emily Zelenović 62 Stockbridge Road | Great Barrington, MA 01230 Tel: (413) 329-6392 |
Email them and see what their fee currently is, see who responds quickest and which one you like the most. Once you’ve picked an attorney, please let us know. This should be done BEFORE a contract comes in. That way you know who your attorney is going to be once we have an executed contract. It’s all about putting together a great team which consists of your Realtor (us) and your attorney.
