Attorney in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area

Residential Real Estate

For most people, buying or selling a residence is the most important financial decision they will ever make. This area of the law is very complicated and troublesome to many people. Serious problems often involve the unwary or unprotected purchase of real estate.

At the Law Office of Kevin Stuart Cavanaugh, in Leawood, Kansas, I have substantial experience handling residential real estate transactions, including For Sale By Owner (FSBO). My fees are very reasonable. Remember, your first office consultation is always free. Please contact me by email of call 913-290-0938 today.

Kansas is a "Buyer Beware" state!

PLEASE DO NOT SIGN A CONTRACT WITH A REAL ESTATE AGENT, MORTGAGE LENDER OR SELLER OF A RESIDENCE BEFORE TALKING TO ME.

I will save you a lot of grief.

Residential Real Estate Transactions

In my current real estate practice, I focus my efforts exclusively on the rights and concerns of buyers and sellers of residential property, including For Sale by Owner (FSBO) transactions.

15 Things Your Real Estate Agent May Not Tell You

1. What the crime statistics are in the area where you want to buy. Sellers and Agents probably won't tell you about crime in the neighborhood or if a registered sex offender lives nearby. You can check the Web or the local police about whether there are any registered sex offenders in the area where you want to buy. For Kansas properties go to http://www.accesskansas.org/kbi/ro.shtml and for Missouri properties go to http://www.sexcriminals.com/regs/1031.html.

2. Whether the house you want is overpriced.

3. How long the house you want has been on the market.

4. Whether there will be major construction beginning in the immediate future.

5. That the realtor's online photos of the house you want are digitally enhanced.

6. Whether pets live in the house and what they do there.

7. Whether any land use and zoning variances affecting the house are pending.

8. That the real estate agent's commission is usually negotiable.

9. Real estate agents are not lawyers, but they may play lawyers when "representing" you.

10. Seller's agents may not tell their sellers about low offers that reduce the agent's commission.

11. You may not get your earnest money back if you want to back out of the sale because you found out something about the house you don't like.

12. Sellers sometimes can sell their home as an FSBO (For Sale By Owner) transaction without a real estate agent.

13. A Seller's Agent may not tell a prospective buyer that the Seller's Agent will tell the Seller everything you say during an open house tour, especially inadvertent comments about your bargaining position.

14. The home inspector the broker recommends to the buyer may not want to kill the sale.

15. Your agent may get you to sign papers waiving any claim you might have against the seller, and your agent, if you find out later that you were misled about the condition of the home you agreed to buy.

Ten Things Your Homes Association May Not Tell You

1. Always study the homes association governing documents before you sign a contract to buy a home in any subdivision with a homes association.

2. Never volunteer to be a member of any homes association board of directors.

3. Never agree to act as treasurer or financial manager for any homes association.

4. Always canvas home owners in a subdivision where you are considering buying a home before you sign anything to find out if there are any current or past disputes between home owners and their homes association.

5. Never pay your homes association dues late. Your late fees for late dues will probably accrue at an alarmingly fast rate. Your dues and late fees owed will become a lien on your home.

6. Never sign a contract to buy a home in a subdivision without first reviewing a detailed description of all homes association dues obligations, what they cover and anticipated increases.

7. Never accept a realtor's verbal description of homes association details. Always obtain this information directly from the homes association and review it before you sign a contract to buy. Once you sign a contract to buy a home it may be too late to complain about homes association obligations that will affect you as a homeowner.

8. Always assess how a homes association's practices will affect your ability to sell your home or obtain the selling price you want should you decide to leave a subdivision.

9. Most homes association bylaws require you to pay the attorney fees of your homes association even if you win your lawsuit against your homes association. Because attorney fees are typically much more costly than the damages you seek to obtain from your homes association, it is almost always impractical to ever sue your homes association. This means that you have virtually no recourse against your homes association for any decision it makes affecting your home.

10.Your subdivision neighbors, who are also in your homes association, can usually change any bad homes association declaration or bylaws, but this almost never happens because home owners don't realize that they can make changes to their homes association declaration or bylaws.

Ten Things Your Mortgage Lender May Not Tell You

1. "This isn't the right loan for you."
2. "A slightly higher rate for you means a bigger check for me."
3. "Don't count on your rate lock when rates are rising."
4. "Our APR doesn't mean what you think it does."
5. "We never met a fee we didn't like."
6. "We're in cahoots with your real estate broker."
7. "Once you buy mortgage insurance, good luck canceling it."
8. "You should worry about our finances, too."
9. "You're 'prequalified'? Don't bank on it."
10. "What happened to your prepayments? Can't be sure."

Things the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) Information May Not Tell You

1. Livability Factors. The MLS will be silent on all the little things that will decide whether this house will be pleasant to live in. The MLS won't mention a drunken neighbor who plays Madonna at midnight. You won't find an MLS listing that brags "mold in the basement makes it smell like your grandmother's house." See if you can find an MLS listing that says "the basement is great for hiding from the tornados this area always gets."

2. Value. The MLS listing won't say whether it's a good buy. The MLS won't clue you in to whether the house is too expensive. The MLS listing won't compare prices in the neighborhood like a good agent will.

3. Repairs. The MLS won't tell you all the things you'll need to fix and the MLS listing won't say how much it will all cost. Don't look for the MLS listing to mention the weak roof or ancient furnace. That's something you have to figure out; the MLS real estate listing won't tell you.

4. Energy Costs. The MLS listing will not rate how energy inefficient this old house is. The MLS doesn't brag about old windows and walls that were insulated with newspaper during the Depression. The MLS listing won't say that you should investigate for yourself what it will cost each year to heat or air-condition your new home.

5. Missing Listings. The MLS listing isn't as strong in some geographic areas. The MLS doesn't really cover the country's tightest real estate market, Manhattan. Sure, there is a tiny MLS listing for the coveted island, but most real estate listings are still kept by individual brokers. And if a broker selling a house isn't part of an association, the house she's selling might not be on the MLS.

6. Crazy History. In cartoons, people are always finding out that their property secretly once held something like an Indian burial ground. Odds are, your house didn't. But what if it had been the site of a murder? Not going to show up on the MLS listing. What if there was once a gas station or shooting range there that potentially contaminated the soil? The MLS won't say a thing. You're going to have to do your own digging-and not rely on the MLS listing-to find out if there was a flood or fire.

7. FSBO Properties. The MLS won't help you find most houses people are selling on their own. The Multiple Listing Service takes homes from multiple brokers. But FSBO homes are not on the MLS listings-unless a real estate broker offers ala carte services and one is an MLS listing.

8. Potential Conflict of Interest. The MLS will list who is selling the house. Pay attention to see if your broker is from the same outfit-and possibly steering you to the house so his company gets both sides to the commission. The MLS listing can tip you off to a potential reason your broker may want to show you a particular house.

Typical Closing Fees and Costs

Lenders estimate 3 percent to 6 percent of the loan amount in closing costs. On a $100,000 mortgage that would be $3,000 to $6,000.

Closing costs could include:

• Loan application fees and credit report
• Title search and insurance fees
• Lender's attorney fees
• Property appraisal
• Inspections
• Survey
• Recording fees
• Transfer taxes
• Buyer's attorney
• Documentary stamps on new note
• Origination fees on mortgage
• Condominium application fee
• Escrow account balances/prepayments (for taxes, insurance)

Real estate closing practices vary widely from state to state and even county to county. Where you live will determine exactly what you will have to pay. Even if you are not required to escrow money for taxes, you may want to set aside this amount to assure that you will be able to pay those tax bills when they fall due. You can get a good idea of what applies where you are buying by checking with a few real estate agents and lenders or title agents.

For experienced and aggressive representation in residential real estate matters, including land use and zoning, contact my offices to set up a free initial consultation. I am available during regular office hours and evenings and weekends. Major credit cards are accepted.

Law Office of
Kevin Stuart Cavanaugh
11115 Ash Street
Leawood, KS 66211-1763
Phone: (913) 290-0938
Office Phone: (913) 387-3193
Fax: (913) 387-3194
Fax: (877) 859-1874
Map and Directions

The Law Office of Kevin Stuart Cavanaugh is located in Leawood, Kansas and serves clients in the Kansas City metropolitan area of both Kansas and Missouri including Overland Park, Olathe, Leawood and Shawnee, and also the counties of Johnson, Wyandotte, Leavenworth, Miami and Shawnee in Kansas, and Jackson, Cass, Clay, and Platte counties located in Missouri.

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