Miami Condo Short Sale Contract Tip #4

Short sales of Miami condos and homes are often a great way for a buyer to get an excellent deal on a property and a seller to get out from under an upside down mortgage with hopefully less damage to credit and his or her pocketbook.  This is the fourth of several blog entries, in no particular order, each with a tip for the buyer or seller or both, to help make sure the deal goes smoothly while giving protection to one or both parties.

Miami Condo Short Sale Tip #4:

Closing Agent and Fees.  Miami condo real estate transaction local practices demonstrate that the buyer chooses the closing and title agent and also pays for the title insurance policy, while the seller pays for the title search and the tax stamps on the sale, and each pays a reasonable closing fee.  In a short sale, sellers and listing agents often work with a title company of their choosing early on in the process to get the initial closing paperwork ready to submit to the lender, or maybe a previous buyer backed out and some of this work was done.  In these cases where the seller is demanding to choose the title agent because some of this title work has already been done, the buyer should be open to accept this, but at the same time should require that the seller pay for the buyer’s owner title policy and basic closing costs, while the other standard closing fees remain the same–Sellers’ lenders do not have any problem with this, but they will not pay for unreasonable “negotiation” or other third party fees.  Often times there may be a third party short sale negotiator company wanting to get paid, and as a result the seller, to avoid paying the fees, will attempt to dictate that not only does the buyer have to pay for the title insurance, but also exorbitant closing fees and costs, while not being able to choose their own closing and title agent.  This can get quite expensive for the buyer, especially when they also hire a real estate attorney to advise them on the transaction.  Like any contract, the terms should be a trade off between the parties, not one party dictating the terms.  There is always another deal for the buyer if the seller is unreasonable.

http://www.southptc.com/short-sale-miami-florida-attorney.html

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Miami Condo Short Sale Contract Tip #2

Short sales of Miami condos and homes are often a great way for a buyer to get an excellent deal on a property and a seller to get out from under an upside down mortgage with hopefully less damage to credit and his or her pocketbook.  This is the second of several blog entries, in no particular order, each with a tip for the buyer or seller or both, to help make sure the deal goes smoothly while giving protection to one or both parties.

Miami Condo Short Sale Tip #2:

One buyer contract.  As previously mentioned, make sure that there is a bona fide Short Sale Addendum to the contract, the most common being the FAR form.  In this Addendum, make sure you cross out or otherwise invalidate the provision allowing the listing agent to submit more than one contract to the seller’s lender.  This is important because the administrative process for the sellers’ lenders is already very slow, and to submit several offers to the lender and have them choose what supposedly is the best offer is likely a waste of time for everybody.  The seller and listing agent should keep it simple, pick a serious contract, and push the lender to accept it and approve it.   Taking back-up contracts is also reasonable, but they should not be sent to the lender as it will confuse things.  The lender should be called a minimum of once per week after submission, if not twice to keep things moving.

http://www.southptc.com/short-sale-miami-florida-attorney.html

http://www.southptc.com/florida-title-company.html

Here is a copy of the Florida Department of Revenue Form DR-430, including the instruction: 

Florida Department of Revenue DR-430 now required Page 1

Florida Department of Revenue DR-430 now required Page 2

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http://www.southptc.com/title-company-miami.html

A power of attorney (“POA”) is a legal document which allows an individual to authorize a second individual to act on his or her behalf in order to carry out his or her will. This often occurs when the purchaser or seller of a property is not available to execute the necessary purchase and sale documents, or loan documents, and a spouse or other trusted individual is given the authority to execute the documents for the absent party. A Florida Real Estate Power of Attorney used to transfer or encumber real estate title has particular requirements. The following are five tips to remember when using a Power of Attorney for a Florida real estate transaction:

1. A Florida Real Estate Power of Attorney must include the term(s) “to sell and convey” or “to purchase and acquire” or “to execute any and all mortgage or other documents encumbering the property” or other language specifically directing authority to transfer or encumber real estate. although a POA without these terms may also be valid, correct terminology will usually eliminate title insurance underwriter closing delays.

2. A Florida Real Estate Power of Attorney must be clearly executed by the party granting authority, and must include two witnesses.

3. A Florida Real Estate Power of Attorney must be properly notarized. The Notary Public can also be one of the witnesses.

4. A Florida Real Estate Power of Attorney must include the address or legal description of the specific subject property.

5. A Florida Real Estate Power of Attorney must be in recordable form if it will be used to execute a recordable document because it must be recorded along with the other closing documents.

Contact Christian N. Folland, Esq., a Florida Bar Certified real estate attorney at 786.276.9900 or cfolland@southptc.com for all your Miami Florida real estate law and Miami Florida title insurance needs.

Folland & Associates, LC, a full service real estate law firm in Miami Beach, FL 33139, and South Pointe Title Company, are owned and operated by Christian N. Folland, Esq.

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