Home Sale Law in Montana

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 there are no laws in Livingston, Montana against individuals buying or selling real estate on their own, this is rarely the best way to go, given the many legal issues surrounding the sale of property.

Many individuals, families, and small businesses rely on real estate brokers to find property for them. Real estate brokers are professionals who serve as middlemen or women between the buyers and sellers of real estate.

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

Getting a Mortgage in Livingston, Montana

First if all, if the buyer asks any question about the condition of the real estate, the seller is absolutely required 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 discover through a reasonable inspection, it has to be disclosed.

Of course, buyers are also expected to conduct due diligence. In a lawsuit 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 Livingston, Montana Real Estate Attorney help?

If you are buying a home in Livingston, Montana, 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 good real estate attorney can make it much easier to focus on the aspects of home ownership that matter to you.