Real estate litigation refers to legal disputes around property ownership or purchase. It may arise during the purchasing, selling, or leasing of a property. 

These disputes may happen with residential and commercial properties. Without correct information, a potential issue around the ownership or transference of a property could quickly devolve into more significant legal disputes, which could result in exorbitant fees. 

Real estate disputes should generally be avoided, yet despite your best efforts, you can still find yourself involved in them. Understanding the causes of property disputes will, however, help you prevent them as much as you can. If you are about to get involved in a real estate transaction, you must immediately contact a skilled real estate attorney. You will be better off preventing these problems and more others with solid legal counsel.

Here are the most common reasons why people get into property disputes that require litigation: 

Breach of Contracts 

Buying and selling a property comes with legal requirements, one of which may be a contract. While all parties are expected to act in good faith and uphold their side of the agreement, this is not always so. In this case, where the other party fails to uphold their obligations made to you, a breach of contract has occurred 

When a breach of contract gives rise to real estate litigation, the wronged party must prove that they have upheld the terms of the agreement and the other party and the other party failed to do the same. If the wronged party demonstrates to the court that these circumstances were detrimental to the contract, they will be entitled to monetary compensation for whatever losses they sustained due to the breach. 

You can prevent these situations by carefully crafting and evaluating the terms of your contract. An experienced real estate attorney is the best person to do this for you. 

Failure to Ensure Full Disclosure 

Property sellers are required by law to disclose to the buying party any hidden or known problems that could reduce the property’s value. As a result, the property buyer has the legal right to sue the seller for failure to disclose if they discover hidden flaws after closing. 

While you cannot outrightly prevent this from happening to you, doing a thorough inspection before closing may bring not-so-evident issues to light. 

To win in such cases, the wronged party will need to prove that the seller knew about the defect or was responsible for ensuring its absence. Also, they may prove that the defects were deliberately concealed. 

Negligence by Real Estate Brokers and Agents 

Real estate brokers and agents must represent their clients’ interests, not those of any other party, not even the property seller. There is a legal requirement for these brokers and agents to protect confidential customer information, including financial-related ones. They are also required to disclose any information that may benefit their clients. Failure or negligence to follow these can lead to legal action. The real estate broker may lose their license. 

Real estate litigation may also be required with cases like title disputes, foreclosure problems, land disputes, easements and leases. Whatever the case, you need a skilled real estate attorney to help you navigate it.

If you need a consultation on what to do about a real estate dispute, contact us here. We have skilled attorneys with years of experience handling cases like yours. Let us work with you to get the best possible outcome.