ScarlettBolsover Posted March 8, 2013 Report Share Posted March 8, 2013 We have been advised by a lawyer that to put property in trust we must pay the closing costs twice. They said this is because you have to transfer the property twice, once from seller to trust and then on completion again from trust to buyer. This means that the fees would be doubled, costing us an extra 10k which we want to avoid. Can anyone advise if this is correct? Also what would our best alternatives be? A promise to buy and sell contract? We have a 20% deposit to put down upfront and then would be paying the balance in about six months time. Please let us know if you can help us! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
costaricafinca Posted March 8, 2013 Report Share Posted March 8, 2013 Whose lawyer has told you this? The sellers? Have you confirmed it with your own lawyer? You will know by now that some things are done differently here, but I have no first hand knowledge regarding this actual situation, but you could hold off/back off to complete the deal, until you have the funds secured to pay in total. Many properties take a very long time to sell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Savannahjo Posted March 8, 2013 Report Share Posted March 8, 2013 I think you need to make sure you are correct via your attorney. This sounds like more of a SA question to me, but I am not an attorney. Did you review all of this with your attornye before you put donw a deposit? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScarlettBolsover Posted March 9, 2013 Author Report Share Posted March 9, 2013 We have been told this by our potential lawyer, recommended by the real estate agent. We have not put any money down yet. But we will lose the deal to someone else if we don't commit within the next month. Trying to work out the best scenario for us bearing in mind we cannot pay balance for about six months. Owner has agreed to this as long as we put down 20% deposit. Trust - costs seem to be doubled as transfer done twice Promise to buy and sell agreement - we hav been told this is risky for us if seller backs out (and he has our deposit) Mortgage - the title would be transferred to us on payment of deposit. I don't think the seller likes this option. I think we are running out of ideas now! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
costaricafinca Posted March 9, 2013 Report Share Posted March 9, 2013 If you put the deposit in trust, then cannot come up with the balance within the stated 6 months, you could lose your funds. Is the risk worth it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReevesTribe Posted March 9, 2013 Report Share Posted March 9, 2013 I think you need to meet with 1-2 other attorneys & get their opinion. I am not a risk-taker in situations like this so I personally would put off a purchase until I had all money in hand. I think it also gives you, as the buyer, more bargaining power because you have cash. Are you absolutely sure the "other buyer" exists or is there a chance this is just a pressure put on you to get you to commit? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eleanorcr Posted March 9, 2013 Report Share Posted March 9, 2013 I have to agree with Reeves Tribe here. It sounds a little "far out," but I always believe that if something is meant to be, it will happen. If you are meant to have this property, then being extra careful not to get yourself in a bind will not result in the loss of the property. I have been in a similar situation and lost a property that I dearly loved. But...... I soon found something else that worked out better in the long run. I would definitely speak to a couple of other attorneys and think carefully about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
costaricafinca Posted March 9, 2013 Report Share Posted March 9, 2013 You haven't mentioned if you are residing here, already or are going to apply for residency. If so. you may find it financially difficult, to have the funds for residency as well as to finalize a property deal. If you are not intending to live in it, year round, you would be advisable to have someone caretake it, which will then be an additional cost. While this may seem to perfect property, believe us when we say there are many perfect deals out there that have been for sale for many years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salish sea Posted March 16, 2013 Report Share Posted March 16, 2013 Hi Scarlett, Disclaimer first: I am not an attorney, in CR or anywhere else, so please take this with a grain of salt. We bought a house from the sellers, (through a real estate agent) using a CR attorney, and there was an SA involved. Closing costs were NOT doubled; there was just a small transfer fee in addition to the lawyer's time. As others have suggested, please check with other attorneys first. This just doesn't sound quite to me. You may send me a PM if you want the name of the attorney we used. regards, Gayle ps: and do proceed with caution because there are rarely multiple buyers for property. As others have mentioned, the real estate market here is hardly robust. This may just be a way for the real estate agent to force you into quick action. (You may want to rethink the entire thing -- think long and hard about whether you are really willing to be coerced into buying something. The same thing almost happened to us and we were very glad that we came to our senses in time.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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