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Reminds me of the time .....the seller was a young corporate attorney, I was representing the buyers. The sellers realtor didn't show up to the closing....after 10 minutes it was evident why. Her client was wanting to ... "radify this and strike that"... nothing of actual merit. The closer, now annoyed.... calmly stopped talking... turned to him and said ...if he had interest in closing on this home today... he would be best served to "zip it" & let her do her job....My buyers could only giggle...believe me...it was difficult keeping a straight face! .... Sunny
another good reason to NOT have both parties at the closing!! Thankfully, here in VA, the buyers have a settlement / closing agent who prepares the actual closing and funds the deal. But the sellers have a settlement agent prepare their paperwork. IF it is different than the buyers agent, the paperwork is forwarded to the buyers agent. But even if they are using the same company, the parties come at different times to execute documents. I love it!!!
SC, that is true in GA (where you are) but not in other states. I was SHOCKED to find that as a buyer I paid for the attorney but they only represented the lender. In other states the attorney can and does represent the buyer. Here in VA. you can use either a title / settlement company or you can have an attorney. If the buyer is feeling apprehensive, than maybe he should have an attorney do the settlement for him/her. It will cost a little more, but you do have representation.
Shelly
Shelly, so the title company doesn't represent either party? Lender nor buyer?
Well, a title company cannot represent a buyer as a legal client. Title companies are not lawyers. They work with laywers, but aren't lawyers.. so NO, they do not represent the client legally. However, they work for the buyer preparing the doc's for settlement.
Does that make sense?
So, if a legal problem arises, the client would need to go out and retain legal representation.
Here, the title company's main responsibility is to (a) provide title insurance, which means verifying that there's a clean title or they won't do that until one exists, and (b) to conduct closings in accordance with all the terms of the contract. Closing should not occur until all of the terms are fulfilled (though some, such as transfer of funds, are fulfilled AT closing, of course).
Any legal issues should be addressed before closing. Preferably WAY before closing.
Well, a title company cannot represent a buyer as a legal client. Title companies are not lawyers. They work with laywers, but aren't lawyers.. so NO, they do not represent the client legally. However, they work for the buyer preparing the doc's for settlement.
Does that make sense?
So, if a legal problem arises, the client would need to go out and retain legal representation.
Shelly
I see... In that case, a buyer definitely needs to protect themselves. At the very minimum, they need a trust worthy buyer's agent or independent real estate attorney; a buyer's agent has no legal authority, but they should be versed on the closing process to identify fraud or inaccurate lender docs.
Note: an attorney should not come to butcher up the documents, but rather to explain and insure their accuracy to an unsuspecting buyer -- and potentially identify fraud or manipulations by other parties.
Location: Mokelumne Hill, CA & El Pescadero, BCS MX.
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It's so much easier in CA, I'm surprised that more states don't do it the way we do. No attorneys, just an escrow agent (Usually an employee of a title company) who represents both buyer and seller according to specific instructions signed by both buyer and seller.
In the case of a conflict between the escrow instructions and the purchase agreement, the escrow instructions prevail as they are deemed to be a later modification of the purchase agreement.
We also don't have buyer and seller in the room at the same time, preventing last minute "negotiations" between the parties.
Absolutely, if you want to get an attorney involved (in Texas that's generally not the case except for pretty complicated transactions), it should be done way before closing. You should have an attorney review the offer before you make it, review the contract before you sign it, etc.
One thing that wasn't mentioned above is that, even on new construction, you should have an inspection done. You'd be surprised the number of things that can turn up on an inspection of a home that has just been built (remember, even the people building your home can come to work one day with a hangover or after a fight with their spouse and something just slip by them). An inspection will help identify those things that need fixing before closing.
I've never seen an attorney at closing here in Texas, FWIW. Even if they assist with the deal, they're not generally at closing for residential properties - the buyer or seller would, of course, have to pay for their time and hopefully anything they would be helpful in has been dealt with long before then.
I'm an attorney, and I agree. Bringing one in at closing isn't going to help you much unless you want him or her to explain to you the legal significance of everything you're signing. If you're not happy with the terms, it's extremely unlikely that anything will be changed right then. You can probably take your contract to an attorney long before closing and go over it with him or her to answer some of these questions, but to be honest, I think it would be a waste of money to hire an attorney to come to the closing with you.
You can probably take your contract to an attorney long before closing and go over it with him or her to answer some of these questions, but to be honest, I think it would be a waste of money to hire an attorney to come to the closing with you.
Hip Hip, Hurray!
Hip Hip, Hurray!
Hip Hip, Hurray!
OMG!!! My agent (buyers agent) told us we needed an attorney & she reccomended one for us & named them in our purchase & sales agreement. I'm scared now after reading this that I really don't need one and that we are being scammed somehow!!! Yikes!!! Any advice?
OMG!!! My agent (buyers agent) told us we needed an attorney & she reccomended one for us & named them in our purchase & sales agreement. I'm scared now after reading this that I really don't need one and that we are being scammed somehow!!! Yikes!!! Any advice?
Don't panic! Depending where you are, it could be the custom that you have a lawyer represent you. If you trust your agent, you shouldn't need to worry. If you have any doubt, call the title company or and ask them what is customary.
Naima
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.....the seller was a young corporate attorney, I was representing the buyers. The sellers realtor didn't show up to the closing....after 10 minutes it was evident why. Her client was wanting to ... "radify this and strike that"... nothing of actual merit. The closer, now annoyed.... calmly stopped talking... turned to him and said ...if he had interest in closing on this home today... he would be best served to "zip it" & let her do her job....My buyers could only giggle...believe me...it was difficult keeping a straight face! .... Sunny
