Rochester Real Estate Lawyer on the Attorneys Role in a Real Estate Matter
- When one party in a transaction doesn’t want to hire an attorney, a client may ask one attorney to represent both sides. Although some attorneys will do so, it is a bad idea, even for family members. Separate representation offers the best protection because, even in a simple real estate transaction, things can turn very nasty and the attorney is caught in the middle.
- Each side should have an attorney to represent their interests; in fact, we usually won’t represent someone unless the other side is also represented by an attorney. Representing both sides can lead to major problems, especially for the attorney who represents a buyer in a transaction where the seller has no idea what they’re doing, but is trying to save money.
- For their individual protection, it’s best for each party to have his or her own attorney – especially in this part of the country where laws are very different from those in other states.
- As an example, title insurance, even downstate New York is completely different. Attorneys in upstate New York have a much larger role than they do in downstate New York or any other part of the country.