Should I Use The Lawyer My Realtor Referred Me To?

SHOULD I USE THE LAWYER MY REALTOR REFERRED ME TO?

This blog is brought to you courtesy of www.lawyerselect.ca

For most people, their experience with a real estate lawyer will be brief and uneventful – and that’s not such a bad thing. However, you won’t realize the real estate lawyer’s value until you’re well into the process and something major comes up, like an issue with the land title or a sketchy clause in the purchase and sale agreement.

The majority of clients are referred to a real estate lawyer by their realtor. This lawyer typically does a lot of business with your realtor, so right from the get-go you’ve got to question your realtor’s motives: is this really the best real estate lawyer for me and my purchase? Don’t sell yourself short. Buying or selling a home is likely one of the biggest decisions you’ll have to make in your life.

Well, you’re probably asking yourself “what other options do I have?” Thankfully, you’ve got some good ones. A lawyer referral service like LawyerSelect.ca, can help put you in touch with the right lawyer for you. That means that they’ll select the lawyers that you can afford, that are relatively close to you, and that you’re likely to work well with.

You can also try finding a lawyer on your own. For many, that isn’t an option, because they haven’t got the time, or they simply don’t know what to look for or ask a potential real estate lawyer. If you fall into that boat, then continuing reading below. We’ll outline the 5 questions that you should ask any potential real estate lawyer before you hire them to take care of your transaction.

The Five Questions a Client Should Ask Their Real Estate Lawyer

1.       How long have you been practicing? The importance of a real estate lawyer’s experience will depend on the nature of your transaction. If you only need assistance reviewing a purchase or sale agreement, then maybe you wouldn’t mind hiring a real estate lawyer with only one to three years of experience. But if you’re dealing with something more complicated, like say a real estate development, or environmentally sensitive land, then you should probably opt for a real estate lawyer with eight to fifteen years of experience.

2.       How many cases like mine have you handled? Not all real estate transactions follow the same path and lead to the same result. You should ask your lawyer if they’ve dealt with matters similar to yours, because if they have, then they’re more likely to foresee potential problems and pitfalls, which they can then avoid.

3.       How would you handle my case? Most people shy away from asking a question like this because they feel intimidated – they’re far less knowledgable in real estate law than the lawyer. Don’t think that way. It’s not at all out-of-line to ask a lawyer what their strategy would be. In fact, this is a good way to indirectly test the lawyer and see if they’ve really got experience handling cases like yours. Often times, if the lawyer isn’t sure of themselves, they’ll respond with a very vague or ambiguous answer. Be alert to responses like that, and decide accordingly.

4.       How will you bill me? Knowing ahead of time how, and how much, you’ll be billed can avoid ugly surprises later. While most lawyers bill by the hour, some lawyers will agree to charge a flat fee for a straightforward matter – such as a simple purchase and sale agreement review and disposition. If that’s the case, see if the lawyer is flexible on the flat fee.

5.       Who else will be working on my file? Perhaps the most important question you can ask a real estate lawyer is: will they be the only ones working on your file, and if not, who else will be working on it, and what will their areas of responsibilities be? Some lawyers will pawn off the initial work to a less senior lawyer, or even paralegals and law clerks that they employ. Whatever their answer, make sure that you’re comfortable with it. For more straightforward matters, it’s more common and widely accepted that some initial work be done by someone other than the actual lawyer you’re hiring. However, the more complicated your matter is, the less willing you should be to allow other personnel to work on your file.