Real Estate Attorneys
Do you need a real estate attorney?
Since you're shopping for a home in Massachusetts, the answer is yes. Massachusetts is an attorney state. This means that the legal paperwork involved with buying a home is prepared by an attorney, and you'll need an attorney to handle the closing process.
Your attorney will be an integral part of your home buying process. Here's what he or she will do:
- Negotiates the purchase and sale agreement with the seller's attorney.
- Help with your title review and title insurance.
- Can help you navigate any issues related to rental or investment properties.
- Conduct you through the closing process.
As soon as you're ready to make an offer on a home, you should find a real estate attorney. How do you find one? Here are a few places to get started:
- Your agent
- Personal references
- View online records of attorneys in MA.
- Your title or escrow company
- Review sites, like Yelp.com
- Avvo.com is an online directory and review site where you can search for real estate attorneys in your area.
Tip!
If you're looking for an attorney, your lender may offer you a recommendation. Be careful before accepting it, especially if you have not locked in your choice of lender. By accepting a lender's recommendation for an attorney, you might be making it much more difficult to switch lenders down the road.
In Massachusetts, it's also important to remember that you can choose a single lawyer to represent both you and the bank. Since you need to pay for a lawyer to handle both the purchase and sale agreement as well as any bank-related tasks, you can often save a lot of money by choosing one lawyer to handle both duties.
Before you agree to work with an attorney, ask a few questions to make sure everyone is on the same page.
- Do you specialize in real estate?
This might seem like a no-brainer, but you want to be sure the attorney you work with is a real estate specialist. Find out how many home purchases they have helped with, and how many transactions they handle per year. - Have you handled deals similar to mine?
An attorney may have plenty of experience with standard real estate contracts, but may not be familiar with less common issues, like bank-owned homes or condo documents. If your purchase falls into a niche category, make sure your attorney is familiar with that niche's unique demands. - What's your rate? Is it flat, or hourly?
Unless you know you'll only be needing your attorney to handle a small, well-defined task, a flat rate is usually a better deal than an hourly rate. Home purchases (especially potentially tricky ones, like bank-owned homes) can take much longer than you expect. An attorney who charges an hourly rate can quickly become painfully expensive. - Can you give me referrals to previous clients?
Ask for 3-5 referrals that you can contact to ask about the attorney's service: What did the attorney do for them? - What did the attorney do for you? Do you feel you got your money's worth?
- How satisfied were you with the attorney's service?
- Were tasks, emails, and phone calls turned around quickly?
- Would you recommend this attorney to a friend?
Tip!
You can ask an attorney questions until you turn a lovely shade of blue, but before you hire one, you should do a quick check with your state's bar association. They'll be able to provide you with information about disciplinary actions or ethics violations in an attorney's past.