Real Estate Services

A:  What you are describing is seller-held financing.  Usually a landlord would have a sales contract with the tenant and then have loan documents prepared (including a promissory note and deed of trust) to be signed at settlement.  The security instrument (deed of trust) would be recorded in the Land Records to basically put the world on notice of the seller’s lien until the mortgage is paid off.  The buyer has the right to select their own settlement / title company but usually the landlord’s attorney would prepare the loan documents and provide them as part of the settlement package.  You’re welcome to call our firm to get more information about a seller take back mortgage. 

A:  While real estate brokers can help market property and navigate the sales process, people are free to sell their homes without agents.  It is difficult to know all of the mandatory disclosures required by state and local law without being a real estate professional. The typical real estate contracts most commonly used by agents in Maryland (MAR form contracts) are prepared by attorneys for use by realtor members of a particular association (e.g., Maryland Association of Realtors or MAR).  For Sale by Owner situations usually benefit from having a real estate contract and applicable addenda prepared by a real estate attorney.  Depending on the situation, an Owner might also want representation at Closing.  Our real estate lawyer can prepare county-specific contracts to sell your home or investment property for a flat fee, you’re welcome to browse our site for more information or give us a call.

A:  Obviously both parties must agree but a lease-to-own or purchase option situation should have a dedicated agreement, separate from the lease, that describes the key terms.  Normally a rent to own agreement will spell out a time frame to exercise the option to buy and contain other critical details (such as how much rent, if any, will be applied to the purchase price).  You’re welcome to reach out to our firm to get more information on how we might assist. 

A:  Generally, no.  While an owner can, in some limited situations, transfer property with an existing mortgage to a close relative, almost all mortgages have a “due on sale” or “due on transfer” clause that means the mortgage must be paid in full on date of transfer.  We do not assist with “subject to” transfers that attempt to get around the requirement to pay off the loan.
 (Now if you are married to the current owner or a child of the owner the answer might be different but we assume you mean to buy an unrelated person’s house without paying off their mortgage which is problematic)