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    August 19, 2015

    Seal the Deal: Real Estate Transactions System Guides You through the Buying and Selling Process

    While clients are checking out floor plans, take your own walk through the buying and selling process by consulting State Bar of Wisconsin PINNACLE’s Real Estate Transactions System.

    Aug. 19, 2015 – In its sixth edition, State Bar of Wisconsin PINNACLE’s Real Estate Transactions System helps lawyers understand the laws and documents that underlie most property deals, so that they can sure-footedly direct clients through the purchase or sale of real property and avoid unpleasant and unexpected invisible hazards.

    Handle any type of real estate deal. Real Estate Transactions System is your one source for complete information on the spectrum of residential real estate transactions, including:

    • Residential and commercial structures

    • Vacant land

    • Condominiums

    • Land contracts

    • Options to purchase

    In addition, you’ll be ready to handle some of the more esoteric areas of real property law, such as marital property and environmental concerns.

    In Real Estate, What You Don’t See Might Be What You Get

    When contemplating selling a house, homeowners are advised to think about “curb appeal,” cosmetic details that stand out and grab a potential buyer’s attention. But such improvements, although often quick and relatively inexpensive, should not be the sole focus of either sellers or buyers.

    Much more significant to the residents’ long-term comfort and health, and thus to the home’s overall value, are those less obvious features of the building and the land on which it sits, including the durability of the sanitary and electrical systems and the presence or absence of toxic substances.

    Open Up About Required Disclosures

    As Real Estate Transactions System discusses, sellers must comply with Wisconsin Statutes Chapter 709’s requirements concerning the real estate condition report. Attorneys involved in real property transactions should make sure the report is completed and submitted in a timely fashion, and the seller’s attorney should educate the seller on the consequences of making any representations concerning the property’s condition for which the seller might be liable.

    But the Chapter 709 report, although necessary, might not provide sufficient assurance as to the property’s condition. Buyers typically make their offer contingent on the results of an inspection by a professional inspector. Real Estate Transactions Systems authors John Horwich, Michael Simpson, and Bruce Block explain exactly how to make the optional inspection contingency part of the offer and they suggest ways to tweak or replace the contingency and other standard offer provisions with language crafted with the specific buyer or seller in mind.

    Among the book’s many examples of a nonstandard provision is the following: “Seller warrants and represents that the well and septic system serving the Property are in conformity with and meet the standards of all state and local laws, ordinances, rules, and regulations, and if not, that Seller shall bear the costs to accomplish the same,” which the authors prefer to the standard language concerning wells and related property features because it requires conformity with all laws and regulations and imposes the cost of correction on the seller.

    Learn How to Find and Repair Hidden Shortcomings

    Because the presence of toxins can be a significant roadblock to a real estate transaction, attorneys representing home sellers or buyers must be familiar with the laws, and even some of the science, regarding contamination by substances such as asbestos, lead, radon, and mold. Author Carolyn Sullivan’s detailed chapter on environmental considerations provides those insights and points attorneys to more resources to help with locating and identifying toxins within buildings and in attached land.

    Visit the One-Stop Shop for Helping Buyers and Sellers

    Real Estate Transactions System helps you confidently help your clients to avoid the potentially immense legal and financial risks of property ownership. The book presents the basic residential real estate transaction step by step and introduces other types of real property transactions. The master information list and checklists will equip you to gather crucial information from a prospective property buyer or seller. The book includes the most current versions of dozens of forms required or recommended for use in Wisconsin real estate transactions.

    How to Order

    Real Estate Transactions System is available to members for $219 in print and electronically starting at $149 via PINNACLE’s interactive online library, Books UnBound.

    For more information about this product or other PINNACLE publications, visit the WisBar Marketplace or contact Customer Service at (800) 728-7788 or (608) 257-3838.



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