In the past year, 89% of people sold their homes with the assistance of a real estate agent. With this in mind, if you’re someone who has listed a home as FSBO before, but needs a little extra assistance this time around, a real estate attorney can help.
Generally speaking, not many people choose to sell their home "For Sale by Owner" (FSBO). However, those who do may simply want to be in charge of their own sale marketing or save the expense of a listing agent's commission. While the starting process of selling FSBO can be easy, the hard part comes with purchasing, transactions, and contracts. A real estate attorney can save you some headaches and help you to get on top of selling your home.
Here are some of the ways you can hire a real estate attorney for your FSBO needs:
- Handle the Paperwork
- Negotiate Third Party Interactions
- Consider Any Offers
- How to Find an Attorney
Handle the Paperwork
Selling your home at any point will mean you will have to complete a lot of paperwork and sign a lot of contracts. When you opt to list your property as FSBO, it’s likely you may have even more paperwork to shuffle through. If you hire a FSBO attorney, a lot of the heavy lifting gets taken off your plate.
A real estate attorney can guide you through the paperwork required in selling a home. An attorney can also ensure that you comply with your state laws every step of the way. Once you’ve received an offer for your home, a real estate attorney can prepare the purchase contract to assist you in negotiations.
Get a free consultation with Rochford Real Estate Law Title to work with a for sale by owner attorney today!
Negotiate Third Party Interactions
When it comes to selling your home as FSBO, a big portion of this process will go into third party transactions. This can include anything from home inspection companies, appraisers, banks, to even construction teams. When you hire a real estate attorney, your lawyer can help deal with third party negotiations involved in the sale of your home.
If necessary, a real estate attorney can also assist in enforcing the terms of your unique purchase agreement, if the purchaser defaults. Even if you are not listing your home as FSBO, we do recommend that you have a real estate attorney to review all contractual closing documents as early in the process as possible. Attorneys can prove to be very helpful in terms of marketing your home as well as negotiating with purchasers and other parties involved in selling your home.
While you are never required to utilize a real estate attorney to help with the sale of your home, it is highly recommended that you obtain some form of legal representation. It is particularly important to incorporate an attorney when there are unique circumstances in your home sale. This can include anything from illegal additions or improvements to the property, or any types of issues with a non-cooperative co-owner.
Consider Any Offers
A real estate attorney can serve many purposes in the sale of your home. This includes FSBO listings as well. When you hire an attorney that specializes in real estate, your lawyer can consider any offers to ensure this would be the best transaction for the market and your sale needs.
A real estate attorney can help you evaluate complicated offers you might receive from a potential buyer, and can potentially take care of the closing documents that follow your sale transaction as well. When you hire a real estate attorney, it becomes the lawyer’s job to assist you as the seller in any way you need.
How to Find a For Sale by Owner Attorney
When you decide to list your home as FSBO, one of your top priorities should be to find a real estate attorney that will provide you with the assistance you need in the housing transaction. Ask friends or family who have recently sold homes for references, or look online for some of the best real estate attorneys in your area. Hiring a FSBO attorney that comes as a reference can make the sale transition even easier on you.
If you are thinking of selling your home FSBO, contact an attorney as early as possible in the real estate transaction process so that your attorney may review the pertinent documentation and properly advise and protect your interests before documents are signed.
If you’re in need of a for sale by owner attorney, contact Rochford Real Estate Law Title today!
