Home Sale Law in Vermont

If you are in the process of buying or selling a home, you're probably already aware of the many legal, financial, and other issues that can affect the process and outcome of such a transaction.

While there are no laws in Colchester, Vermont 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.

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.

Some Colchester, Vermont 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 Colchester, Vermont

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 Colchester, Vermont 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 Colchester, Vermont real estate attorney can help you focus on the positive aspects, and avoid dealing with the most difficult and tedious (but nonetheless necessary) aspects.