Be Informed.

For the average person, purchasing a home will be the largest and most important investment they ever make. It can also be a confusing and stressful process given the complexity of the transactions involved and the importance of the outcome. Prospective home buyers are required to navigate a seemingly endless number of steps before they finally become a homeowner. A buyer also typically commits to repaying a sizeable mortgage loan as part of the home buying process. Relying on professionals to assist throughout the home buying process certainly helps; however, as recent scandals have proven, even well-known individuals and institutions in the financial industry are not always above reproach.

The Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act of 1974, or RESPA, was passed in an effort to prevent dishonesty and fraudulent dealings among the entities involved in the buying and selling of property, including lenders, construction companies, real estate agents, and title insurance companies. Because of the complex nature of RESPA it is in your best interest to work closely with a Pennsylvania real estate lawyer if you are planning to purchase real estate; however, a general overview of RESPA may also help you to better understand your rights as a buyer.

A zoning variance is an exception to the existing zoning law. If you own property, or wish to purchase property, and the existing zoning does not allow you to use the property in the way in which you wish to use it, you have two basic options – try to get the zoning changed, or apply for a variance. Re-zoning, or changing the existing zoning, it typically much more complicated and harder to get approved than obtaining a variance because a variance is a one-time exception for a particular property whereas re-zoning permanently changes the existing zoning designation.

In Pennsylvania, the amount you pay in property taxes is determined by your millage rate as well as by an appraisal that is performed on your home. The higher the value that your home is appraised for, the higher your real estate taxes will be.  As a result, residential property tax appeals are focused on challenging the valuation of your appraisal so you can try to get the official value of your home lowered.

Homeowners, home sellers, lessors and lessees, commercial property owners, developers, and anyone else who is entering into a real estate transaction needs to consider the terms of the contract, the financing terms, and a wide variety of other issues in order to ensure that their purchase is a good one for both the long-term and the short-term.

Because zoning regulations only allow for specific kinds of uses for each given property or lot, zoning rules dramatically impact how a residential, commercial, or industrial property owner can use his or her space. As a result, ownership of a property is never absolute because it is always subject to zoning restrictions. The authority of municipalities and local government to establish zoning rules has withheld challenges to the U.S. Supreme Court, and it is clear that property owners must respect zoning rules and not use properties for unapproved uses or build structures that violate zoning laws.

In general, a home is assessed only at specific times. Your home will be assessed to determine its value when it is newly built and completed.  Homes are typically re-assessed when a sale occurs and new people move into the house. When you do home improvements and pull permits, this can also result in a reassessment of your home to account for the higher value due to the improvements.

The Landlord and Tenant Act of 1951 establishes many of the rules applicable to the landlord/tenant relationship in the state of Pennsylvania. Tenants have many rights under this Act, but five of the most fundamentally important rights of tenants include the following:

If a landlord fails to provide an apartment or rental unit that a tenant can actually live in, the tenant has rights including the right to withhold rent or the right to deduct from the rent to pay for the cost of repairs. Both landlords and tenants should seek legal help if a dispute arises related to problems with the habitability of the apartment, as there could be significant amounts of money at stake.

Montgomery County millage rates determine the amount of taxes that will be paid.  The millage rate refers to the amount per $1,000 of property value that is used to determine the amount of property and school taxes owed. You will multiply the assessed value of your home times the taxable percentage of the home to determine the amount that is taxed. You then multiply this by your millage rate. For Conshohocken, the 2016 county millage rate is 3.459 and the 2016 municipal millage rate is 3.5. The school millage is 20.5125 and the total millage is 27.4715.

Landlords may wish to evict a tenant for a number of reasons, such as a desire to move in a tenant who will pay more; a tenant who is violating the terms of the lease; or a tenant who is not paying rent as required.  Whatever the reason why a landlord wants to evict a tenant, a landlord should not move forward unless and until the landlord has spoken with an attorney and is confident of how the eviction process will work. This is because tenants have many rights during eviction and landlords cannot just force them to leave.

There are a lot of different reasons to talk with a zoning and land use attorney, but all of those reasons essentially boil down to two basic issues: can you do what you want with the property and how much cost and complexity is involved in doing what you want with the property.

Before you purchase land for development and throughout the development process, it is imperative that you do your due diligence so you can make the best choices for the success of your project. There are many different things you'll need to make sure you do so you can feel confident the land is a good investment that you can develop the way you wish.

Zoning rules are aimed at protecting property values, preventing crime and problems for residents, and maintaining nice areas to live. Unfortunately, these rules can be frustrating if you find that they prevent you from doing what you want to do with your own land. It is best to find out as early as possible in the purchase or development process whether zoning will be a problem for you.