Home Sale Law in New York

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.

In Valley Stream, New York, it's perfectly legal for individuals to buy and sell homes without the assistance of a third party. However, this isn't the only option, and isn't always the best option, either.

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.

Valley Stream, New York real estate brokers are usually paid by taking a pre-determined portion of the house's sale price.

Getting a Mortgage in Valley Stream, New York

If the buyer asks a direct question concerning the physical condition of the property, the seller must answer it truthfully. Misrepresenting a material fact in a real estate transaction is a very serious form of fraud, and could give rise to significant damages against the seller.

Furthermore, most defects should be disclosed even if the buyer doesn't directly ask about them. Generally, defects which must be disclosed are those which are known to the seller, and which the buyer cannot be expected to find through a regular inspection.

Buyers should remember, however, that if they are not blameless in their failure to discover defects, they might not be able to recover if they sue.

Buyers have to conduct reasonably-diligent inspections of land they want to purchase. If they fail to do so, they can't sue for any defects which they could have easily discovered.

Can a Valley Stream, New York Real Estate Attorney help?

If you are buying a home in Valley Stream, New York, 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.