Locate California Real Estate Lawyers

In California, real estate law is a very broad area of law covering anything that has to do with the ownership of land and buildings.

Real estate law can apply to many different facets of a personal and professional life. It can apply to anything from the purchase of a vacant lot, to renting prime downtown office space.

California real estate law can be very complex, because it's really a collection of a lot of different areas of law. These areas of law include property rights, contracts, land use, and many others.

Having a good basic knowledge of California real estate law can make a lot of transactions, such as buying a house or renting an apartment, much easier.

Common Real Estate Issues in California

Financing: Most people in California probably can't afford to buy a house or a piece of land up front. Therefore, most individuals and business use some form of financing to purchase real estate, usually a mortgage. A mortgage is a loan used to buy a piece of real estate, with the purchased real estate simultaneously securing the loan.

Disclosure: When selling a house, the seller is under a strict legal duty to tell the buyer about any physical defects which the buyer might not be able to discover on his or her own. Sometimes, it isn't entirely clear if a given defect has to be disclosed. In such cases, it's best to disclose it anyway. It simply isn't worth the risk to fail to disclose it, and hope that a court agrees that it was the type of defect that you didn't have to disclose.

Warranty of Habitability: All residential property which is being rented must be fit for human habitation. This is usually not a difficult standard for a reasonably well-maintained unit to meet (or one would think), but violations of this rule still occur. When renting an apartment, the landlord is implicitly promising that the unit will be habitable, whether or not such a promise is actually written in the lease, or even if the lease disclaims it. There are many requirements for a dwelling to be habitable, and most of them are fairly obvious- they include heating, running water, electricity, and basic protection from the elements. There are many other requirements, however.

Zoning Laws: Before you begin any construction project, you need to make sure that it will not violate any zoning laws in California. This is because zoning laws restrict what can and can't be done on a given piece of property. They can be pretty complex, but, in general, they are designed to ensure that people who use land in different ways can co-exist as harmoniously as possible. To that end, they work to keep industrial and residential uses separate, among other things.

Do I Need a California Real Estate Lawyer?

The issues discussed above, as well as the many others that can affect real estate, can get very convoluted. For that reason, it's probably a good idea to consult with a California real estate lawyer before undertaking any major real estate transaction.

Interesting Facts About California

California is located on the Pacific Coast of the United States. With a population of over 37 million people, it is by far the most populous state in the U.S. California's state capitol is located in the city of Sacramento. The California State Capitol building located there serves as home to the state legislature and the Office of the Governor.

The history of California is driven by a series of "booms" centered in major cities, such as the San Francisco gold rush, the Central Valley agricultural booms, the filming industry boom in Hollywood, and the technology boom in Silicon Valley. These industries, as well as California's location on the coast, have led to an influx of people from all over the U.S. and around the world.

California is known for its ornate historical courthouses like the Alameda and Fresno courthouses. Over time most California courthouses have been renovated or rebuilt in a more modern fashion. Currently, California courthouses feature new technologies in the courtrooms. Some of the more active California Superior Courts include the courthouses in Alameda, San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Fresno.

California's legislature is always very "busy", and the state is known for its complex set of laws. Lawyers in California are required to pass one of the most rigorous bar exams in the country. This ensures that California lawyers understand the vast network of laws and regulations that are unique to the state. California lawyers offer legal services in a broad range of fields and topics.