Grand Rapids Real Estate Disputes and Litigation Attorneys
For many of us, real estate provides a home or a source of wealth generation. Unfortunately, the very real financial stakes involved in real estate can lead to property disputes and even litigation. If you’ve found yourself in the middle of a dispute involving real property, an experienced attorney can advise you of your rights, protect your interests, and seek to resolve the matter as efficaciously as possible.
Don’t leave the outcome of a dispute to chance. Instead, get the legal help you need to pursue the resolution you deserve. Contact SBS Law PLC for an initial case evaluation with a real estate lawyer in Grand Rapids, MI.
Why Choose a Real Estate Litigation Attorney from SBS Law PLC?
A real estate dispute can put your property or your financial interests at risk. Protect yourself by engaging the services of an experienced real estate litigation attorney from SBS Law PLC. We believe we’re the right choice because of:
- Our dedicated approach: We take an attentive, responsive approach to handling your case from the moment you hire us to represent you in a real estate dispute. Our attorneys maintain a sense of urgency to pursue a fair and favorable result in your case as efficiently as possible so that you can move forward past your dispute.
- Our big service from a small firm: We offer clients the personalized attention that only a small firm can provide. However, our attorneys can also help clients with in-depth knowledge and extensive legal insights commonly attributed to bigger firms.
- Our professionalism: We work hard to create an atmosphere of compassion, helpfulness, and seriousness, so you can trust our firm to protect your rights and interests. We treat every client who walks through our doors with the dignity and respect they deserve.
- Our trusted experience: Our broad knowledge across a wide range of service areas of the law allows us to tackle complex challenges that may arise in our clients’ cases.
Real Estate Disputes That Frequently Lead to Litigation
At SBS Law PLC, our attorneys regularly represent clients facing real estate disputes such as:
- Breaches of contract: Disputes often arise from differing interpretations of contractual language. Examples of breach of contract include failure to close, failure to make required seller disclosures, failure to fulfill closing conditions (such as obtaining financing), or disposition of deposits or escrow funds.
- Lease or landlord-tenant issues: Landlords and tenants can get into disputes over payment of rent, maintenance, habitability of leased premises, alleged breaches of lease provisions, or renewal of lease periods.
- Boundary disputes: Neighbors may dispute the boundary lines between their properties. Property owners may file litigation due to alleged encroachment over property lines, necessitating title searches and the hiring of surveyors to determine the correct boundary.
- Title issues: Title problems can lead to major legal disputes, particularly when parties attempt to sell property. Title issues like breaks in the chain of a seller’s title or title encumbrances such as mortgages, property tax liens, or mechanic’s liens can complicate the process of selling a property. Title issues can also lead to legal disputes when parties have competing claims to a superior title to the property.
- Zoning or land use issues: Property owners sometimes run into disputes with local governments over zoning and land use issues, particularly when owners seek to use or develop their properties in ways not permitted by local law. Owners may need to resort to litigation if local authorities’ refuse to grant variances. Neighboring property owners may also file litigation to challenge the issuance of variances to which they object.
- Easement issues: Property disputes can involve issues with easements or property access. For example, a property owner may seek an easement over a neighboring property’s land to access public roads or common amenities. Disputes can also arise when parties interfere with existing easements or rights-of-way.
- Co-owner disputes: Disputes can arise between tenants in common or joint tenants who co-own a property and have disagreements over finances, maintenance, use, or whether to continue owning the property. These disputes can lead to partition actions to split the property or force a sale and divide the proceeds.
The Real Estate Litigation Process
Real estate disputes sometimes escalate into litigation, a process that involves several steps. First, parties may investigate the dispute to obtain evidence that can establish their respective rights. Next, parties may submit demand letters to opposing parties to begin settlement negotiations. A demand letter can lay out a party’s evidence, legal arguments in support of their position, and requested resolution. For example, a party might propose financial compensation or a specific action by the opposing party.
Should informal negotiations fail to produce a settlement, parties may engage in more formal negotiations through mediation or initiate litigation by going to arbitration. Arbitration may be required by the parties’ contract or when both sides agree to submit the dispute to arbitration. Alternatively, parties may file lawsuits in court.
Litigation can involve a discovery period, in which each side exchanges evidence and information to identify disputed issues. Parties may file pre-trial motions in court with the hope of obtaining a judgment before trial. Should a case not settle or resolve through pre-trial proceedings, it will eventually reach a hearing or trial for a court or arbitration panel to decide the case.
The litigation process is complex, so if you find yourself in a real estate dispute, it’s critically important that you have experienced legal counsel to represent your interests and effectively navigate the system on your behalf.
Alternatives to Litigation
Parties may pursue other options instead of litigation to resolve a real estate dispute. Alternatives to litigation often provide parties with quicker, more cost-effective, and confidential resolutions to property disputes than litigation can. For example, parties to a real estate dispute may agree to mediation, in which a neutral third party, called a mediator, helps each side understand their respective positions and facilitates settlement negotiations by suggesting mutually agreeable solutions.
Parties could also agree to submit their dispute to arbitration. Although arbitration involves an adversarial process like litigation, it is less formal and speedier than going to trial. Parties can also retain an arbitrator to decide their case.
How Can an Attorney Help You in Real Estate Litigation?
Real estate disputes can cause significant stress, especially when they escalate to litigation. An attorney can relieve this stress by handling the legal side of the dispute on your behalf. At SBS Law PLC, we can assist you by:
- Meeting you to better understand your needs, concerns, and goals so that we can tailor our approach and strategy to your objectives
- Thoroughly investigating your case to recover critical evidence and determine your legal rights
- Evaluating your options for resolving your dispute, including by pursuing settlement negotiations, mediation, arbitration, or court litigation
- Vigorously protecting your rights and interests, even if that means taking a dispute to trial to fight for the results you want and deserve
Contact Our Firm Today for Support and Advocacy in Your Real Estate Dispute
If you’ve found yourself in a dispute concerning real property in the Grand Rapids area, you need seasoned legal counsel to protect your rights and seek the resolution you deserve. Contact SBS Law PLC today for a confidential consultation with a real estate attorney, and let’s discuss your matter in detail.
