Specific performance in the context of a real estate transaction is, for instance, when the seller is refusing to sell the house. They don’t have a reason. They just decided they’re not going to sell the house. A specific performance is a remedy that’s available to the buyer if it’s written into the contract that can essentially force the seller to do something, specifically to make an act. Most remedies in the legal system are based on damages or money damages, but specific performance … you’re actually asking the court to force the party to do something.

A 1031 exchange is a provision in the federal tax code that permits a seller of investment property to reinvest the proceeds of the sale into another investment property, deferring the capital gains tax to a later date. It’s a great way to save money as an investor and it’s important to employ the services of an experienced real estate attorney when you’re considering doing a 1031 exchange, as there are many rules and IRS regulations that must be complied with.

A balloon mortgage is a type of mortgage that after a certain period of time comes due before you would typically pay it off. For instance, you may get a loan that’s amortized every 30 years but has a five-year balloon. After the five years, the entire amount remaining on the loan is due and payable to the mortgagee.

When you purchase real estate with financing, you sign a note and a mortgage. A note is what obligates you to repay the debt. A mortgage is what puts the property up as collateral for that debt. A foreclosure is when the lender is seeking to sell the collateral because the borrower is not making their monthly payments. It is important to consult with an experienced real estate attorney if you’re served with a foreclosure because you could lose the property.

A loan modification is something a lender might consider if you’re behind in your payments. They may change the term, they may add missed payments onto the back of the loan. Essentially, they’re trying to keep you in the house instead of doing a foreclosure or a short sale. It’s important when attempting to do a loan modification to have an experienced Florida attorney representing your interest to the lender.

A quitclaim deed is a type of deed in Florida that provides no warranties. The person signing the quitclaim deed is essentially giving you what they have if they have anything. If they have nothing, you receive nothing. If they have the entire title to the house, you receive the entire title to the house. This deed is often used to cure title defects, for instance, and also in situations where in a divorce one spouse is giving up their interest to the other spouse.

In the state of Florida, if you’ve owned a home less than three years, and you receive title insurance at the time of closing, you may be eligible for a reissue credit, which is about a 40% discount on what title insurance typically costs. In addition, any time you refinance a property and you have a title insurance policy already in place, you’re eligible for the reissue credit.

A short sale essentially is when the lender agrees to take less than what is owed on the mortgage. This became a common occurrence, unfortunately, when the real estate market crashed in 2008, 2009. People often owed far more than her homes were worth. Instead of foreclosing on all these homes, sometimes a bank will agree to do a short sale, which is to take less than what is owed.

A survey gives you a visual representation of your property lines and boundaries of the property. It will show if there are any structures on the property, where those structures are located in terms of your boundary lines, so you can assess if the neighbor’s fence is on your property or if an improvement on your property is encroaching onto a neighbor’s property. You will need a survey if you’re going to obtain title insurance so they can insure the title against easements and encroachments because those items cannot be discovered without performing a survey.

A Time is of the Essence Clause in a contract means that the time periods are important in the contract. Any contract that has a Time is of the Essence Clause, a judge or court is going to enforce the time periods strictly whereas if that clause is absent, if someone misses a deadline or a closing by a few days, a court may say that that’s de minimis or not a big deal.