When you sell real estate, know the law
Every member of the Tulare County Association must stay up-to-date on all the many changes to real estate law in California
More than 150 members of the Tulare County Association of Realtors gathered recently at the Marriott Hotel in downtown Visalia to learn the newest legal information from Gov Hutchinson, the lead attorney for the California Association of Realtors (CAR). Hutchinson, the top real estate lawyer for the Association, runs a legal hotline for all 90,000 members of the association in the golden state.
Every member of the Tulare County Association must stay up-to-date on all the many changes to real estate law in California in order to best serve the needs of their clients. Also this week, Leslie Appleton-Young, Chief Economist for CAR, came to town to give her forecast for growth in the state and Southern San Joaquin Valley.
Understanding mortgage, real estate terms
Tracking all real estate activity in the state through members of the county association’s gives Appleton-Young insight into the markets in all sections of the state. Her predictions for 2017 indicate real estate markets will continue strong in Visalia, Tulare and Porterville, especially under the leadership of President-Elect Donald Trump, who is pro-growth in every sense of the word.
Knowing the law is extremely important even if you decide to sell your home yourself. In California, a seller of real property containing one to four residential units must supply a buyer with a complete Real Estate Transfer Disclosure Statement in the form prescribed in Civil Code 1102.6. Only a few specific types of sales are exempted (Civil Code 1102.1), such as court ordered sales and transfers among co-owners or blood relatives. The disclosure statement clearly conveys the seller’s knowledge as to the condition of the property being sold.
In addition to a transfer disclosure statement, most sales of single family units require a “Smoke Detector, Water Heater and Carbon Monoxide” statement of compliance. That’s part of the Health and Safety Codes.
A “Seller Financing Disclosure Statement” is another requirement of the law (California Civil Code 2956-2967). This disclosure statement may be prepared by either the buyer of the seller as outlined in Civil Code 2957 (a). Both buyer and seller are provided a copy.
The Disclosure statement is applicable to most residential real estate transactions involving four or fewer units whenever the Seller has agreed to extend credit to the Buyer as part of the purchase price.
Growing microgreens in your backyard
And don’t think the state is the only government passing laws you must obey when you sell real estate. The County of Tulare enacted ordinance Number 2931, effective as of November 1990, requiring a disclosure statement, prior to transfer, that the County of Tulare allows operation of properly conducted agricultural operations within the County. The local option statement details what is involved in “agricultural operations” and points out areas of possible concern to anyone who buys real property in our county.
These are just a few of the many disclosures needed in the sale of California Real Estate and they are all good reasons you need to hire a Realtor, trained in legal updates, when you get ready to buy or sell real property in Tulare County.
Mike Allen is the Managing Broker of Century 21 Jordan-Link & Company, afull service real estate firm headquartered in Visalia celebrating their 40th Anniversary this year. Mike can be reached at 733-9696 or MikeAllen@JordanLink.com.