Blog: Real Estate Law

Buying a home is one of the biggest purchases you will ever make in your life. So before you jump in, you should know a little bit about how real estate transactions are conducted in Georgia. Here are just 3 things you should know about Georgia’s rules when it comes to real estate closings.

If you are looking to buy a home and your credit score is poor or you don’t have adequate funds for a down payment, your financing options may be limited. A lease purchase contract is one alternative that may facilitate a purchase when the buyer cannot secure a mortgage from a lender.

The purchase contract for a home generally includes certain contingencies that must be satisfied for the transaction to be finalized. These contingencies are intended to protect the buyer. If a contingency has not been met, then the buyer can typically exit the contract without a penalty.

At least 20 states have adopted some form of HOA “super lien” statute. These statutes give the liens of residential and/or commercial homeowners’ associations priority over earlier recorded liens. Georgia, however, is not an HOA super lien state.

In Georgia, shared communities have the option to be governed by state regulations that set forth specific policies for the operation of such associations. Established in 1994, the Georgia Property Owners’ Association Act (Act) was developed to grant increased authority to homeowners associations (HOAs).

Owning real estate comes with many rights. Unfortunately, however, not all a property owner’s rights are unfettered. Zoning regulations impose a number of restrictions on a person’s property. Zoning laws can impose many restrictions on how property can be used.

When a marriage falls apart you get divorced. When business partners fall out, they dissolve the partnership. But what happens when two or more people who own the same piece of property want to split up and go their separate ways? In real estate law, you generally look to the rules of partition.

When you are buying a home, there is so much to think about. You need to know your price range, what you are looking for in a house, and where you want to live. If that’s not enough, you also need to know and understand what your “due diligence” obligations are and why they are important.

Have you ever wondered what happens if a real estate agent doesn’t perform as required? As with other breaches of a contractual duty, if a real estate agent does not live up to his side of the bargain, a client who has been damaged by the breach can seek redress in court.

Commercial real estate transactions can be very complex. Disputes may occur between various parties in the deal and can be challenging to resolve. One common conflict in commercial real estate transactions involves the payment of broker commissions.