| Presentation of and Response to Offers to Buy Real Estate |
| All offers to buy real estate must be presented to the seller or his agent as soon as possible. That means that as soon as the buyer's offer is made available to the listing agent, that offer must be presented to the seller. The listing agent has no discretion in whether to present an offer to the seller. All offers must be presented, even if the listing agent believes that the seller will not accept the offer.More... |
| Disclosure of Material Facts and Hidden Defects |
| When a buyer is looking for a dream home, the last thing he or she expects to find is a material defect that will change the dream into a nightmare. To avoid that scenario, a real estate agent has an obligation to make a full and timely disclosure of all known facts that are relevant or material to the condition and characteristics of the property under consideration.More... |
| Land Trusts |
| A land trust is a device by which land is conveyed to a trustee for the benefit of another. A settlor is the owner of the property that is placed into the trust. A land trust is created when settlor expresses his or her intent to create a trust through a written instrument. The instrument must name the trustee and identify the trustee's powers, the beneficiaries, and any remaindermen. The settlor may be the trustee and, in most cases, the beneficiary of the land trust.More... |
| Marketable Title and How It Is Affected by Liens |
| A entered into an agreement of sale with B wherein A agreed to purchase certain real estate. Among other items in the agreement, B specifically agreed to convey "marketable title" to A. The title inspection ordered by A revealed numerous liens against the real estate, including tax liens and judgment liens.More... |
| The Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act |
| Certainly, the purchase of a home is a very significant event. In 1974, Congress enacted the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) in order to protect home buyers from paying excessive settlement costs and from certain abusive practices.More... |
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