Home Sale Law in Missouri

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 possibly life-changing financial and legal decisions.

While there are no laws in Sedalia, Missouri against persons buying or selling real estate on their own, this is rarely the ideal way to go, given the many legal issues surrounding the sale of property.

Therefore, it's usually a good idea to use a real estate broker for these transactions. A real estate broker is a professional who helps people buy and sell property. They can help buyers find sellers, and vice versa. They can also handle a large percentage of the tedious details.

Sedalia, Missouri real estate brokers are usually paid by taking a pre-determined portion of the house's sale price.

Getting a Mortgage in Sedalia, Missouri

First if all, if the buyer asks any question about the condition of the real estate, the seller is absolutely obligated to answer it truthfully. If the seller provides any false information about the condition of the property, and the buyer buys it and later finds out, they can sue the seller for any harm caused, and the diminution in the house's value.

In addition to disclosing any material facts the buyer directly inquires about, most "latent defects" in a house or other piece of property should be disclosed whether the buyer asks or not. Generally, any defect that the seller knows about and that the buyer can't be expected to know through a reasonable inspection, it has to be disclosed.

Of course, buyers are also expected to conduct due diligence. In a case for nondisclosure, courts won't reward a lack of diligence.

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 Sedalia, Missouri Real Estate Attorney help?

If you are buying a home in Sedalia, Missouri, there are probably things you want to focus on other than paperwork and required inspections, such as the process of moving in, checking out schools, etc. A reputable real estate attorney can make it much easier to focus on the aspects of home ownership that matter to you.