2009 Copyright, FFFS Web Administrator

                               

For most of us, a real property transaction involving either a sale or a purchase of residential

or commercial property is either the largest or one of the largest monetary transactions in

which one becomes involved.  Therefore, it seems to me that the wisest course of action

is always to retain a real estate attorney to advise you.  The best time to retain a real

estate attorney (or any attorney for that matter) is before you sign a contract.  

However, if you have already had a realtor prepare your contract—and this is quite

typical in residential real estate transactions, you should still consider having your own

attorney represent you at the closing; or at the least have him or her review the closing

documents in advance of the closing.  Since I am a real estate attorney WE  usually want to prepare all the closing

documents, such as the contract, closing statements, appropriate affidavits and compliance agreements in my office.  WE

also want to have the mortgage lender send me any mortgage loan documents and loan monetary figures so that I can include

them on the closing statements and then go over them with the folks who are borrowing the funds.  I do this for both Sellers

and Buyers since in my opinion, it just seems to work better that way.

        If you are purchasing real property, WE believe it is of the utmost importance to obtain title insurance and this is true

even if you are purchasing a new home that was built by the builder for you.  It is the safe and secure way to purchase real

estate.  There can be outstanding claims or liens about which even the developer/builder may have no knowledge.  Title

insurance is the single most effective and least costly way  to protect the owner of real property be it residential or

commercial.  WE like to explain it this way: institutional mortgage lenders require what is known as a mortgagee title

insurance policy as part of the due diligence they must perform prior to advancing funds.  This is a type of title insurance

policy that insures the mortgage lender that it has a valid mortgage and that it is prior to any other liens (other than those the

lender has already taken into account).  A mortgagee policy protects the lender’s mortgage but does not protect the 

landowner.  So, if a mortgage lender requires a title policy, should that, in and of itself, not convince a buyer that he/she/they

In the state of Florida, if you are purchasing property as your homestead, you will be entitled to receive the homestead

exemption on the property.  In order to have the homestead exemption, however, you must be a Florida resident.  The

homestead exemption means that the first $25,000 of the homestead’s assessed value is not subject to ad valorem real estate

taxation.  You must keep in mind that the homestead exemption is only available for those folks who reside in the property as

their homestead.  Thus, if you put a child on the deed with you but if that child does not reside in the homestead property, then

you will lose at least a portion of the exemption.  And you can also lose all of or a portion of the Save Our Homes Cap.  So,

         Well, okay, what is the Save Our Homes Cap (SOH)?  It’s a provision in the Florida Constitution that limits the

increase in the annual assessment on homestead properties.  The SOH limits the amount a homestead property can be valued

for assessment purposes to no more than 3% a year. Simply put, the SOH just “caps” the amount upon which a homestead

tax bill can be based.  When that homestead is sold, SOH cap is removed and then the value for real estate tax purposes is

increased to whatever the market value as determined by the tax appraiser’s office is as of January 1 of the year following

the sale.  WARNING:  There is a “trap” for the unwary.  I’ve seen deeds of homestead property prepared by attorneys who

are licensed to practice law in Florida but who live in other states and really practice outside of Florida, but who claim that

they understand Florida law.  What happens if the attorney is not familiar with the SOH cap is that they go ahead and make

the transfer into trust and a year later, the SOH cap is lifted.  The proper thing to do until such time as uniform rules exist

throughout the entire state of Florida is to check with the tax collector in the county where the homestead is located and

make sure that any transfer into trust will not result in a loss of the SOH cap.

    ASSETS PROTECTION

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