Often financing is an important part of structuring any commercial real estate transaction. In cases where purchase money financing is used and the seller acts as the bank making a loan, sellers often need to retain security interests to protect their interests. This may take the form of promissory notes, mortgages, guarantees, UCC filings, assignments of rents, and other tools. Our attorneys can assist in the structuring of terms and the perfection of security instruments to safeguard your interests and your transaction.

Most residential purchases involve obtaining a mortgage to complete the transaction. Early on it is important to protect your interests by understanding the terms and duties created with mortgage contingency clauses in both your offers to purchase real estate and your purchase and sales agreements. The timelines and obligations in these provisions can be crucial, especially in a transaction that is delayed or being abandoned.

As a buyer, failure to understand these contractual duties can lead to you losing your deposit and more when a lender is unable to proceed with a loan. As a seller, the timeliness of obtaining commitments from a Buyer's lender can mean months of time when your property is not being aggressively marketed. It's important both sides have an advisor informing them when dates and numbers seem unreliable and what steps they should take to protect their investment. Once a mortgage is approved by a lender and a commitment is made, the next step involves accepting the terms of the mortgage at your closing. With all the boilerplate language, do you know where to find the important terms you should be looking for?

Maybe you're a seller and have paid off a mortgage but don't have proof of doing so? It's not uncommon for a document known as a mortgage discharge to be missing in a transaction. This is usually discovered only as the closing is approaching and after a title exam has been conducted. Here you need to know what to do and how to do it quickly to avoid delay and additional problems in your deal. In addition, as a seller, perhaps you have a mortgage on your property that needs to be paid from the sale proceeds. The buyer's bank will need proof of exactly how much you owe on the day of the closing. Has your mortgage been moved from lender to lender and do you know how to get this information in a timely manner and in the correct form for the buyer's bank to proceed?

Are you unable to make mortgage payments or keep up with the payments on your loan? If so, what are the best options for you to pursue? Perhaps you are a lender who is financing a transaction on your own or with others, are you prepared to foreclose on a property or is it your best interest to find a compromise arrangement that protects your investment? The terms of a workout agreement or other arrangements are best explored with professional advice. In these circumstances the best solution is often the one the parties can work out and agree on, instead of a costly and long process which the law dictates.