Real Estate

Don't Pay More Than Your Fair Share You may have noticed that your home value has sky-rocketed in the last two years. Know who else has noticed? Your local appraisal district.     That is bad news for your property tax. A higher home value means a higher property tax. You can protest your property valuation once a year. In the meantime, one good way to whittle homestead property taxes down is to...

A high net worth divorce is a divorce in which the property owned by the couple has a high monetary value.  While high-asset divorces follow the same legal principles and proceedings as non-high net worth divorces, the process is much more complicated and requires a more sophisticated approach. Two issues that must be addressed in all divorce cases - but especially in the context of a high net worth divorce...

While Texas is among the states that do not require you hire an attorney when buying your house, there are times where an attorney can provide significant value.  A real estate attorney can add value if you are buying a home without a real estate agent, or in the event your transaction involves one of the many complex situations that can arise when buying a house.  Real estate agents...

Is dying a taxable event? According to your friendly Federal government, the answer is yes. Let us ask a more meaningful question: is it fair that the government gets to take 40% of your hard-earned money just because you die? Class? What Is The Federal Estate Tax for 2021? We have a federal estate tax of 40%. Most people do not pay it because their estate does not exceed the federal estate tax...

Can a comic valentine lead to a will contest? You bet. The year was 1896. Deep in the heart of Texas, a certain elderly woman received an unsigned comic valentine. According to the appellate court opinion (which we will liberally quote because of its picturesque language) the card was intended as a “burlesque” upon the woman and was “calculated to incite in her a high degree of mortification and shame.” What...

While Texas is among the states that do not require you hire an attorney when selling your house, there are times where an attorney can provide significant value. For instance, when you decide to sell the house without a real estate agent or during one of the many complex situations that can arise when selling a house. Real estate agents are adept at the standard sales transactions, but they...

You may be faced with a governmental agency or private actor threatening to take your private property under the power of eminent domain. When this happens you have several rights designed to provide protection for your private property or, in the least, provide you just compensation. What is Eminent Domain vs. Condemnation? Eminent domain is the power of the state, or an authorized private actor, (the “condemning party”) to take private...

In Texas real estate transactions, property deeds are extremely important and there are formal conventions that pertain to them. For instance, to convey title to real estate in Texas, the grantor must execute a deed in front of a notary public. The deed must also be presented to and accepted by the grantee, and then filed of record in the county clerk’s office. This final step of filing puts...

“Friends, Relatives, In-laws, lend me your ears.  I have come to bury our relationship, not to praise it.  You need to leave my house now.” Feel free to tweak the foregoing to fit your situation.  Shakespeare most assuredly will not mind. There are few situations more fraught with anxiety than dealing with a houseguest turned squatter.  You might be dealing with an adult child who moves back home for “just a...

A Definition of Asset Based Lending Asset based lending in real estate finance, also referred to as equity based lending, involves extending a loan that is secured by real estate assets. These assets can include commercial, residential and industrial properties, as well as land. For asset based mortgage lenders, the main criteria for loan approval is the value of the real estate, as well as the amount of the down...

Breach of Contract Defenses There is a legal epidemic that is keeping pace with the COVID-19 epidemic:  breach of contract. That includes contracts that are contained in a 100- page document, an e-mail chain, a napkin, or just spoken words.  There are a lot of contracts out there that are getting broken because of the extraordinary events of the last several months. If you are the one doing the breaking, then you...

Commercial real estate transactions — including buying and selling, leases, and construction — can range from simple to complex. You may be able to manage a more straightforward exchange yourself without the need for assistance from a third party. For more complicated transactions, though, it makes more sense to bring in a commercial real estate attorney. What does a commercial real estate lawyer do? A commercial real estate attorney is a...