Home Sale Law in North Dakota

Buying or selling a house can be an exciting but stressful time in a person's life. It also requires a person to make a large number of potentially life-changing financial and legal decisions.

While it's possible in West Fargo, North Dakota for individuals to buy or sell property on their own, this is not the only (or necessarily best) option. There are many complex legal and financial issues involved, so the assistance of a professional is advisable.

For that reason, it's usually best to buy and sell property through a real estate broker. This is a person who helps a person buy or sell a home. They serve as an intermediary between the buyer and seller, help sellers find buyers, and help prospective buyers. They also handle a great deal of the paperwork and other formalities involved.

Some West Fargo, North Dakota real estate brokers charge a flat fee, but most take a relatively small percentage of the sale price of a house they help a client sell.

Getting a Mortgage in West Fargo, North Dakota

First and foremost, if a buyer asks any question of the seller relating to physical defects in the property, the seller must, under all circumstances, be as truthful as possible. In this case being "as truthful as possible" means answering such questions to the best of your knowledge, and making reasonable efforts to find the answers if you don't know them. Lying in this case is very bad idea, and will expose you to serious civil penalties

There are some defects which should be disclosed whether asked or not. Any defect which the seller is aware of, and the buyer can't be reasonably expected to discover before buying the house, must be disclosed.

Buyers, however, are not off the hook in this matter. If they ignore defects that they could have easily discovered, they probably won't be able to recover for them.

Generally, buyers have a duty to conduct a reasonable inspection of the property before buying it. Therefore, buyers usually can't recover for defects that could have been discovered via reasonable inspection, unless the seller actively conceals them.

Can a West Fargo, North Dakota Real Estate Attorney help?

As you can imagine, there are many more legal and financial issues that can affect the outcome of a real estate transaction. However, buying a house is also a very exciting time for most people. A good West Fargo, North Dakota real estate attorney can help you focus on the positive aspects, and avoid dealing with the most difficult and tedious (but nonetheless necessary) aspects.