Everyone was excited to close. The Buyers were ready to move into their dream home and the Seller was ready to take the sale proceeds and start a new life out of state. The only thing that needed to happen for everyone to walk away with a smile was closing...

 

That's when we found the problems. The title search showed unpaid liens and judgments against the Seller--a common issue that we usually fix by paying everything off at closing using the Seller's proceeds. In this case, the Seller had already paid the liens years ago - to the tune of over $40,000 - but the lenders never recorded the paperwork.

 

That might bring other closings to a screeching halt. It's a long hard process to convince a lender you already paid them, and even harder to make them record the paperwork to prove it.

 

With the help of A. R. Pike Law Firm, the closing happened on time. The Buyers got their home while the Seller's funds stayed in escrow while an attorney pursued the lenders. A few legal demand letters and proof of payment made the lenders move fast. Within a couple of weeks, the Seller had her proceeds and an extra $500 for her trouble. Everyone was happy!

The Seller lived in her home for over 15 years. After recently remarrying, she decided it was time to sell and move out of state. She met a friendly realtor who helped her list the home and within a few weeks the home was under contract and proceeding to closing... until the title search came back.

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The title search showed that the Seller purchased the home 15 years ago with her ex-husband. The two divorced and the Seller received the home as part of the divorce settlement. To comply with the court order and save a few bucks, the ex-husband made his own deed (Google makes everything so easy!) that *almost* transferred his ownership interest in the home to the Seller. Unfortunately, the ex-husband missed a few important parts on his "Quick Claims Deed" and his ownership interest never legally transferred to the Seller, who was now unable to sell her home to the Buyer, until...

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With the help of an A. R. Pike Law Firm attorney, a correct deed was created and the ex-husband was tracked down. When he was informed of his legal obligation to correct his mistake and the consequences of refusing, he quickly signed the new deed, which was recorded. Now the Seller had clear title and could sell her home!