Home buying and selling season is almost upon us. And along with the excitement of buying and selling a home comes the stress of signing contracts and attending closings.

Having a good real estate agent is key during this process, but so is having a good attorney.

While most closings are dealt with through a title agency, an attorney can handle closings just as easily and at about the same cost. While title companies usually separate out their fees, once you add them together they generally come up to the same cost as an attorney’s total fee.

So what is the benefit of having an attorney handle your real estate transactions? Here are just three reasons you might want to have your attorney with you at closing:

• Title Issues and Defects
  Unfortunately titles often have issues, but a seasoned real estate attorney can find and solve these issues quickly. Knowing any title issues beforehand is key to a smooth closing. Trying to resolve title issues on your own can become laborious and tedious if you don’t know the appropriate actions and avenues to take. Your attorney can handle all of this for you, and ensure your closing goes smoothly and everything with your title is clean and clear.
  

• Contract Provisions
  A real estate attorney can give you advice on the kinds of provisions you may need to put into a contract that will help to resolve disputes or keep them from arising in the first place. Contracts are often confusing documents that can lead to messy closings or provisions you weren’t aware of and aren’t happy with at the end of the day. Using an attorney can give you the assurance that any contract you sign is in your best interest and that there won’t be any surprises on closing day or any day after that.
  

• Breach or Default in Contract
  Having an attorney on hand during a real estate transactions means that if any breach or default occurs, you can quickly resolve them with legal expertise. Waiting until an issues arises, then searching for a qualified real estate attorney may take too long, extend the closing process or even nullify an agreement. Keeping your real estate attorney at hand during the process will put you at ease that if anything does happen, you will be protected immediately.

While your real estate agent or broker may want you to use their preferred title company, talk to them about working with your own real estate attorney to ensure you are protected and that everything throughout the transactions goes smoothly and is handled properly.