Real estate attorney is crucial in lease-to-own deals

Q. You answered a question in a column about things to protect yourself against when "taking over payments" to eventually become the owner. There is one important one I did not see there: make sure the seller is actually the owner.Some years back in another state, my daughter and her husband contracted with a widower to rent his house, with rent credited toward purchase. After a couple of years and some significant improvements, it turned out that the man's late wife was the owner of record. The property didn't legally belonged to him, but instead to her children from a previous marriage! An expensive lesson learned.A. I'm happy to remember that in answering the item you referred to, I would have advised using an attorney when entering into a lease-option agreement. Even without a full title search at that point, I'd like to think a lawyer would check the property tax account, which would show the owner of record.If your kids had a lawyer when they "contracted" with the widower, I'd say the attorney had some obligation to help them when they discovered the problem. It might never have occurred to them to verify ownership, but a lawyer should have done just that.How will you prioritize the following?bull; Choice of street.bull; Choice of neighborhood.bull; Choice of town.bull; Size of the house.bull; View from the house.bull; Location of house.bull; Elevation of the house.bull; Curb appeal.A. Your question looks to me like a really poor homework assignment. I'm trying to imagine what the course might be: How to write advertising? Beginning salesmanship? Basic appraisal? And just what is "elevation of the house?"But at any rate, if you're asking what should matter most to a buyer, then of course each person's priorities will differ. You haven't even listed what I'd look at first: the reputation of the local schools. I'd research that if I had school-age children. Even if I didn't, I'd still take it into consideration because school quality eventually affects resale price.I currently live in a home that my father and I purchased when I was going to school for my undergrad degree. We thought it would be wise to invest in a property as opposed to throwing money out the window on a rental. Now five years later, I am ready to get out! A combination of intrusive neighbors and bad memories are making my living situation unbearable.The roommates I have had in the past have definitely not done their part to keep the house up, and now there are several repairs that need to be made. I need to be able to make some profit off the sale of the property. What should I be doing to get the sale process started? Can I sell my home in its current condition? Do I need to get a home-equity loan to make home improvements?A. As you found out, being a landlord is hard work, particularly with a transient student population.How much profit you "need to be able to make" doesn't matter. The only thing that counts is what buyers are willing to pay. To find out, look at lawn signs and ads, and then call three different real estate brokerages that are active in the neighborhood.Ask them to send someone over to advise you about which repairs are necessary and how to show the house best at the least expense. They'll know what price you're likely to get on the open market. The advice will be free, and you won't have any obligation until you sign up an agent to market the property.My siblings and I own property as joint tenants. Unfortunately we have had our differences, and I have been wanting to sell my portion. My brother and sister don't want to buy my portion. Can I still sell my portion without them agreeing?A. You have the right to sell your share, but where will you find someone who wants to be a partner with your brother and sister?You also have the right to force a public auction of the property ("partition"). That's an expensive and messy process, but perhaps a letter from your lawyer, mentioning the possibility, might make your siblings more cooperative about finding a solution.bull; Edith Lank will respond to questions sent to her at 240 Hemingway Drive, Rochester, N.Y. 14620 (please include a stamped return envelope), or readers may e-mail her at ehlank@aol.com.2009, Creators Syndicate Inc.