Real estate transactions really can be dangerous. I made a good living for 20 years as a real estate attorney because of mistakes or problems with real estate transactions. The thing about unseen dangers, or traps for the unwary as I like to call them, is that we aren’t aware of the extent of danger until we get hurt. It’s a little like this gentleman walking outside on a winter day and slipping on the ice. If he had known how seriously he would be injured, I do not doubt that he would have been so careful, he would never have fallen.
Every year in the United States tens of thousands of Americans come dangerously close to having serious car accidents. Most of the time, they never know how close they came. Thousands of children walk across thin ice every winter across the U.S., and a few fall through the ice. We hear about them on the news, but the vast majority of kids walk across thin ice without incident, and they never know how close they were to the precipice of death. No one will know. They are never written about. And so it is with real estate transactions every day of the week.
Real Estate Transactions Gone Awry
You only hear about the real estate transactions that go really bad and make the news, but what about the many thousands of real estate transactions that come precipitously close to disaster that you never hear about? I know from experience that many real estate transactions do get closed and nothing goes wrong, but several things were done very wrong and could have gone bad. People are lucky that way. Things often work out despite ambiguous language, incorrect documentation, contract breaches, problems that are covered up by someone.
Real Estate Transactions and Wise Advise
There’s an old saying, “Surround yourself with wise counselors.” If you want to avoid the nightmare or near-nightmare that so many buyers have experienced in real estate transactions, I strongly urge you to find and hire wise counselors when you buy your retirement home. That includes a wise real estate agent, a wise mortgage broker, a wise home inspector, and so on. Transitioning to retirement is no time to fall through the ice. There is far too much at stake at this phase of your life to be involved in risky or dangerous real estate transactions for lack of good advice.
Last Updated on September 19, 2019 by Chuck Marunde
