Buyers preparing for real estate transactions often focus on location or aesthetic concerns. They may want an open floor plan or a home that already has a modernized kitchen so that they don’t have to make major revisions to the property.
People often focus so much on the appearance of the property that they may fail to ask important questions that could have legal implications in the future. Real estate transactions can lead to liability and years of financial responsibility. Those preparing to purchase real estate in 2025 often need to ask a few important legal questions before making offers.
What questions should buyers ask to protect themselves?
1. Are there any issues that affect this property’s reputation?
Seller disclosure rules require that property owners inform prospective buyers of all known physical issues with the property. Buyers should receive accurate information about whether there have been pests at the property and if there are foundation issues. However, disclosure documents don’t include stigmatizing details that could affect the property’s resale value in the future.
While sellers don’t have to provide written disclosures about allegations of hauntings, deaths at the property and other issues that could result in property stigma, they do have to provide honest answers to direct buyer questions. Inquiring about potential stigma at the property, ideally in writing, can protect buyers from investing in the wrong property.
2. Are there major local changes in the works?
Generally speaking, people can only buy properties in areas zoned for residential or mixed-use purposes. Those looking to live in rural areas can also sometimes buy homes attached to agricultural property.
Those moving into a neighborhood may be unaware of efforts to rezone the property or develop nearby parcels. Asking the seller, their agent and any local authorities about planned changes to the nearby community can have a major impact on the viability of a purchase.
3. Are there liens or easements to address?
Typically, the title history search process turns up any issues with the property’s title. It can be frustrating to learn that there are easements that prevent an owner from modifying the yard or liens that they have to address after already negotiating an offer on the property.
Buyers can protect themselves from financial overextension or transactions that fall apart at the last minute by directly inquiring about any existing easements or liens that could affect the transaction or their use of the property in the future.
Buyers may also need help crafting customized documents that offer them adequate legal protection throughout the transaction. Reviewing prospective properties and real estate documents may help buyers take some of the risk out of residential real estate transactions. Buyers who ask the right questions can better eliminate properties that could cause major headaches in the future.