(Hint: the answer is not what you think) Home prices are at an all-time high as are mortgage interest rates. As anyone in the industry can tell you, this is fertile ground for a seller’s market – which is exactly what is going on: these are prime conditions in which to be a seller. So… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Real Estate
Time to Refinance again
While the stock market and oil prices have been dropping like a rock over the last few weeks the positive effect of this is that interest rates are once again at all-time lows. As investors around the world are selling stocks and seeking safe havens to park their money they are buying US Treasuries which… Read more »
DO I NEED AN ATTORNEY TO BUY OR SELL A HOME IN NEW JERSEY
One of the questions my law firm is often asked is, do I need an attorney to buy a home? The technical answer in New Jersey, is “No”. (See In re: Opinion No. 26 of the Committee on the Unauthorized Practice of Law, 139 N.J. 323 (1995)). However, the common practice in northern New Jersey… Read more »
NEW TAX LAW: WHETHER TO BUY, RENT, SELL OR STAY PUT
With the new tax bill being implemented and mortgage rates on the rise, our office has received a number of inquiries from both potential sellers and buyers as to whether to (i) sell or stay put and (ii) buy or rent. While the decision is more of a personal one, and the tax bill (at… Read more »
Cooperatives vs. Condominiums
Many first time home buyers, or even seasoned home buyers for that matter do not realize that there is a difference between purchasing a condominium (“condo”) and purchasing a cooperative (“coop”). While listing all the differences and nuances could take quite a bit of time as well as a lot more detail, for purposes of… Read more »
3 Good Reasons Not To Make A Payment Plan In Landlord Tenant Court
3 Good Reasons NOT To Make A Payment Plan In Landlord Tenant Court By, Robyn Latman, Esq. It happens all the time. In fact, it happens in most of the eviction cases that are filed in New Jersey. The parties settle their cases, and they enter into a payment plan for repayment of the past… Read more »
Condition of the Property on the date of closing
One issue that keeps presenting itself lately is the condition of the property at the closing. In the majority of residential transactions, the subject property is supposed to be left in broom clean condition, subject to reasonable wear and tear at the time of closing. There are times of-course where the property is being left… Read more »
Advocate vs. Adversary
One of the brightest legal minds that I ever had the pleasure of working for gave me some strong advice that I have carried with me throughout my career. He said, “Andrew, you need to advocate your client’s position, but you do not need to be adversarial about it”. I have carried this advice with… Read more »
Short-sale Auctions
The Short Sale Process in NJ Has Changed Over the past several years the short-sale process has changed; sometimes for the better and sometimes for the worse. These changes generally (i) involved the short-sale seller, short-sale lienholder, and the short-sale contractual purchaser and (ii) pertained to documents that needed to be provided by the short-sale… Read more »
Failure to Extend the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act and its effect on Short-Sales
As written before on this blog, one of the prime benefits of a person selling his/her home via short-sale, as opposed to letting his/her home be sold via sheriff’s sale, is that more often than not the outstanding balance owed to the primary mortgage holder after the short-sale has taken place would be forgiven. Of… Read more »
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