Glossary

Real Estate Attorney What is a real estate attorney? A real estate attorney is someone who is licensed to practice real estate law, meaning they have the knowledge and experience to advise parties involved in a real estate transaction, such as a home sale.​ ​ What does a real estate attorney do? Real estate attorneys know how to and are legally authorized to prepare and review documents and contracts related to the sale and purchase of a home. They are responsible for conducting the attorney review . In a home purchase transaction, both the buyer and seller can hire an attorney to represent their interests during the process. Or, in the case where an attorney is overseeing a closing where the home is being purchased with a mortgage loan, the attorney may actually represent the mortgage lender. Contractual issues with the purchase: If your home purchase involves any out-of-the-ordinary elements that could complicate your purchase contract, a good real estate attorney can make sure that all your contracts take into account the complexity of your situation as well as help you out if contractual issues arise during the process. Peace of mind: If you just have a feeling that something could go wrong or you want to be sure all your bases are covered, having a lawyer on your side can help give you the confidence that even if the transaction does go awry, you have a legal professional who is looking out for your best interests and can help you work through a tricky situation. ​ How much does a real estate attorney cost? How much you’ll spend paying your real estate attorney (or attorneys) will depend on what services they’ve provided for you and who is responsible for that particular closing cost. If your mortgage lender requires an attorney to be present at closing, whether the buyer or seller covers the cost of the closing attorney will depend on how your contract was negotiated. How and how much a real estate attorney charges will vary, but here are some basic ranges to give you an idea of what you’ll spend: Fixed hourly rate: A real estate attorney who charges an hourly rate may charge $150 – $350 per hour, but this can vary a lot depending on how experienced the attorney is and what area you’re in. Fixed rates for specific services: They may also charge a flat fee for the particular services they provide. For example, a real estate attorney might charge $500 – $1,500 to conduct a home closing. Their fees may also depend on the sale price of the property in question. ​ How can I find a real estate attorney near me?​ Here are some places to start looking for a reputable real estate attorney: Ask for a recommendation from your Realtor, Friends or Family. Utilize your state’s Bar association directory: Your state Bar association’s website can help you locate lawyers in your area who practice real estate law. Use the American Bar Association’s directory to help you find your state’s website. Use an online legal review site: There are many online review websites that will give you information on attorneys in your area, including their specialties, fee structures and any reviews left by former clients. If you are a transacting in Illinois, these are some real estate attorneys to consider: Gary Mages Need 2 more ​ ​

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Your Real Estate Resource Helping home buyers and sellers in the Chicagoland area with all their real estate needs! Home Buying Process One-Stop Resource PadScouts' Real Estate Resource is here to tell you about all of the steps involved in the home buying and selling process. Our goal is to give you information about the processes so you can make informed choices for your real estate decisions. Personalized Consultation Home Buying Process Learn every step of the home buying process from start to finish. There are a lot of steps and many people involved. We want to make sure you're fully informed! Lease-To-Own Opportunities Not ready to buy a home? There are resources available that can help you secure the property before you can buy. Home Selling Process Learn every step of the home selling process and all of the costs associated so that you can make the best decisions when selling your home. Glossary There is a lot of terminology in real estate. Look them up here to learn about them before a real estate transaction. Reviews Our real estate experts are here to help you if the site doesn't have the answers you're looking for. See how they've helped others who've requested a free consultation. “This was a great resource to look up information about selling my home! I had a complex inheritance deal so I scheduled a personal consultation and spoke with Robin. He was amazing to work with and helped us navigate the resources available to help us buy the property! ” Gloria M. Contact

REALTOR (R) Buyer's Agent A REALTOR (R) is real estate professional that is both a licensed real estate agent or broker AND a member of the National Realtor's Association. They are experts in the residential real estate process and help represent Sellers and Buyers during their real estate transaction. ​ On this page, we will discuss the role, duties, and responsibilities of the Buyer's Agent: ​ Role Showings: Buyer's Agents will contact seller properties to schedule time and access for property showings. Negotiations: Buyer's Agents will assist the Buyer in the Offer Negotiation process when a Buyer decides to purchase a property. Management: Buyer's Agents will assist the Buyer in managing the entire buying process by organizing all of the requisite documents and ensuring all parties involved in the transaction are active in ensuring the buying process is being executed. ​ Benefits - You do not need a real estate agent to buy a home; in fact, some home buyers leave the Buyer's Agent out of the equation. However, you might benefit from hiring one. ​ To save time. Agents can often help you find homes in your price range, and they may have access to more properties than what you’ll see online. To get information and help with negotiations. Good agents should have wealth of information to help you make a decision. And, they’ll handle a lot of complex paperwork on your behalf. Offer Contract Contingency Negotiations Home Inspection Reports Appraisal Reports Earnest Money Escrow Extension Requests Another plus is that your agent will handle a ton of paperwork on your behalf. Unless you love filling out forms – and have experience in real estate transactions – this is a chore best left to the professionals, who should ensure that everything is done by the book. You could easily make a mistake with these documents. Mistakes can cause deals to fall apart or (worse) make you liable for an inadvertent breach of contract. (Licensed agent will have errors and omissions insurance to limit this risk.) An experienced agent will make sure that everything that needs to take place — counter-offers, extensions, appraisal, inspection, walk-through, loan approval — happens when it’s supposed to and how it’s supposed to.​ Market expertise: Conducting a home search by yourself can be a full-time job. Though the Internet makes it easy to find homes in your price range, a good agent usually has access to more properties. That includes For Sale By Owner (FSBO) properties and homes that aren’t yet listed. In addition, some sellers of desirable homes do not wish to “go public.” Only agents (and their colleagues) working with those sellers even know about those so-called “pocket listings.” The exception: There is ONE instance in which you must use an agent to purchase property. That applies if you bid on FHA foreclosure properties. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requires all bidders to use licensed agents. ​ ​​

Accepted Offer You will have a binding contract if the seller, upon receiving your written offer, signs an acceptance just as it stands, unconditionally. The offer becomes a firm contract as soon as you are notified of acceptance. ​ As a buyer, if you receive a counter offer, you are able to accept the Seller's counter offer. Again, upon acceptance by both parties, the counter offer becomes a firm contract.

Highest and Best Offer In a highly competitive market, multiple buyers will submit offers for the same property. In these situations, it is possible that Sellers will contact all Buyers who’ve submitted offers to resubmit their highest and best offer. This is a negotiating tactic that may be utilized to request Buyers to submit their best offers for the property. ​ ​

Appraisal Whether you’re buying a home using a mortgage, refinancing your existing mortgage, or selling your home to anyone other than an all-cash buyer, a home appraisal is a key component of the transaction. If you’re a buyer, owner, or seller, you’ll want to understand how the appraisal process works and how an appraiser determines a home’s value. ​ The Basics An appraisal is an unbiased professional opinion of the value of a home and is used whenever a mortgage is involved in the buying, refinancing, or selling of that property. A qualified appraiser creates a report based on a visual inspection, using recent sales of similar properties, current market trends, and aspects of the home (e.g., amenities, floor plan, square footage) to determine the property’s appraisal value. The borrower usually pays the appraisal fee, which can be several hundred dollars. When the appraisal value is lower than expected, the transaction can be delayed or even canceled. ​ The Appraisal Process and How Values Are Determined​ Because the appraisal primarily protects the lender's interests, the lender will usually order the appraisal. An appraisal costs several hundred dollars and, generally, the borrower pays this fee. According to the Appraisal Institute, an association of professional real estate appraisers, a qualified appraiser should be licensed or certified—as required in all 50 states—and be familiar with the local area. Per federal regulations, the appraiser must be impartial and have no direct or indirect interest in the transaction. A property's appraisal value is influenced by recent sales of similar properties and by current market trends. The home's amenities, the number of bedrooms and bathrooms, floor plan functionality, and square footage are also key factors in assessing the home's value. The appraiser must do a complete visual inspection of the interior and exterior and note any conditions that adversely affect the property's value, such as needed repairs. Typically, appraisers use Fannie Mae's Uniform Residential Appraisal Report for single-family homes. The report asks the appraiser to describe the interior and exterior of the property, the neighborhood, and nearby comparable sales. The appraiser then provides an analysis and conclusions about the property's value based on their observations. ​ The Appraisal Report Must Include: A street map showing the appraised property and comparable sales used An exterior building sketch An explanation of how the square footage was calculated Photographs of the home’s front, back, and street scene Front exterior photographs of each comparable property used Other pertinent information—such as market sales data, public land records, and public tax records—that the appraiser requires to determine the property's fair market value

Buyer's Agreement (Illinois)

Title Companies A title company makes sure that the title to a piece of real estate is legitimate by conducting a title search and then issues title insurance for that property. Title insurance protects the lender and/or owner against lawsuits or claims against the property that result from disputes over the title. Title companies also often maintain escrow accounts — these contain the funds needed to close on the home — to ensure that this money is used only for settlement and closing costs , and may conduct the formal closing on the home. At the closing, a settlement agent from the title company will bring all the necessary documentation, explain it to the parties, collect closing costs and distribute monies. Finally, the title company will ensure that the new titles, deeds and other documents are filed with the appropriate entities. How much does a title company's services cost? The cost of title insurance depends on the size of the loan and varies greatly depending on the state. The good news is that the premium is a one-time fee you pay at closing, not an ongoing expense. According to the Federal Reserve, “a lender’s policy on a $100,000 loan can range from $175 in one state to $900 in another.” You’ll typically pay an additional amount — usually a few hundred dollars or more, depending on the size of the loan and your state of residence — for a buyer’s policy. Note that you may be able to get a discounted rate on your title insurance if the property was sold within the previous five years; just call and ask.

Pricing Strategy Being able to sell your home quickly is a matter of competitive pricing. There is a fine line between pricing low enough to sell, versus pricing just above market value. Your Realtor is responsible for conducting a market analysis in order to recommend the best possible listing price to help your property sell within a reasonable amount of time. ​ Although the Realtor may recommend a price, the Seller is ultimately the person who will make the final decision. Each Seller’s situation is different and you’re allowed to sell your property for lower or higher than your Realtor’s recommendation. But, speak with your Realtor to understand the implications of selling higher or lower than the recommended list price.​

Home Inspector Home inspectors are certified and licensed by each State to provide home inspections for real estate transactions. Home inspectors have a lot of ground to cover. Every reasonable, visible inch of a home is evaluated from top to bottom, and the inspector records the findings in a report for the Buyer, a real estate agent, or another client.

Offer An offer is a purchase agreement that is sent to the Seller with a proposal to purchase the Seller’s property under specific conditions and price. ​ In Illinois, this is the standard document used to submit an offer. See It Here ​ What is generally included in an offer: ​ Your purchase offer, if accepted as it stands, will become a binding sales contract —also known as a purchase agreement, an earnest money agreement or a deposit receipt. It's important, therefore, the offer contain every element needed to serve as a blueprint for the final sale. These purchase offers should include the following: Address and sometimes a legal description of the property Sale price Terms—for example, this is an all-cash transaction, or the deal is subject to you obtaining a mortgage for a given amount. Seller's promise to provide clear title (ownership) Target date for closing (the actual sale) Amount of earnest money deposit accompanying the offer—whether it's a check, cash or a promissory note—and how the earnest money will be returned to you if the offer is rejected (or kept as damages if you back out of the deal for no good reason) Method by which real estate taxes, rents, fuel, water bills and utilities are to be adjusted (prorated) between buyer and seller Provisions about who will pay for title insurance , survey, termite inspections and the like Type of deed that will be granted Other requirements specific to your state, which might include a chance for attorney review of the contract, disclosure of specific environmental hazards or other state-specific clauses A provision the buyer may make a final walk-through inspection of the property just before the closing A time limit (preferably short) after which the offer will expire Contingencies ​ Can you take back/withdraw an offer? In most cases the answer is yes, right up until the moment it is accepted—and in some cases even if you haven't yet been notified of acceptance. If you want to revoke your offer, be sure to do so only after consulting a lawyer who is experienced in real estate matters. You don't want to lose your earnest money deposit or get sued for damages the seller may have suffered by relying on your actions. ​ Learn more about the offer process: Counter Offer​ Accepted Offer Offer Rejection Highest and Best Offer ​ ​​