Northridge, CA · Member since 2012 · 23 posts · 0 votes
I am looking for an investor friendly RE Attorney in the Los Angeles area to help me construct and go over documents for Wholesaling and Lease Options.
Are there any out there you recommend? How much should I be expecting to spend?
With all due respect, much of this is not how you should find an attorney. In the fourth post down in this thread, I note how we naïvely took a recommendation for an attorney simply from others who had seen and were entertained by him at a local REI club. It was a five-figure mistake but helped us focus in on what and what not to look for when choosing a professional. There is some simple criteria.
Don’t accept a referral from anyone who has not personally used the attorney and only after you confirmed your legal issues were similar. Would you choose a doctor this way? Like medicine, there are specialties even with real estate law. A great attorney for a friend’s problem might not be suited for yours.
Here are the few lessons I concluded that post with:
Select an attorney based on your specific need and his specific skills. Don't choose one because someone else was happy and recommended him, unless you know your situations are identical. Worse, make sure those who recommend anyone to you actually use him or her.
It's not the law firm, it's the attorney. Make sure you know who you're getting, as well as their specialty/capability and fit to your problem.
Don't choose an attorney because he's a good entertainer/speaker on stage at a real estate club or any other professional, or guru, for that matter.
Obtain and check relevant references from those in your shoes.
I know this doesn’t provide you with an answer, Matthew, but it might provide a bit more certainty in your choice.
Matthew Newman, you and I are in the same city...Northridge. I just heard a local RE attorney speak the other night that seemed like a knowledge guy. He is an attorney and broker specializing in RE. I never used him. PM (however that works) me and I will give you contact info. If you use him let me know how it works out.
Also, there is a local RE meetup group here next Tuesday, I can also give you that info if interested in talking more. I don't know anything about the meetup, just found it on meetup.com.
I have a highly reputable contractor/investor friend in the San Fernando Valley. He has a specific RE attorney he recommends. I just texted him to find out the contact name/number. I will pm you as soon as I get it. My friend does amazing work btw...for anyone looking for a great contractor in LA. He's an amazing resource even if only for quotes, opinions, etc.
All the California investors here, I would like to get those attorney's contacts for the Los Angeles area you mentioned here. I am walking the line between realtor / investor so I need some professional advice.
That also said maybe we could partner on deals since I have resources that most investors don't. Just don't ask me to give you my MLS login, not worth the fine!
@Brooke Isbell @Account Closed I need a RE attorney to review private lending documents for a project in the SFV area that I want to lend on. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
@Brooke Isbell @Account Closed I need a RE attorney to review private lending documents for a project in the SFV area that I want to lend on. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Checkout the vendor directory under legal at California Mortgage Association. They all specialize in CA lending, any of them would be fine.
With all due respect, much of this is not how you should find an attorney. In the fourth post down in this thread, I note how we naïvely took a recommendation for an attorney simply from others who had seen and were entertained by him at a local REI club. It was a five-figure mistake but helped us focus in on what and what not to look for when choosing a professional. There is some simple criteria.
Don’t accept a referral from anyone who has not personally used the attorney and only after you confirmed your legal issues were similar. Would you choose a doctor this way? Like medicine, there are specialties even with real estate law. A great attorney for a friend’s problem might not be suited for yours.
Here are the few lessons I concluded that post with:
Select an attorney based on your specific need and his specific skills. Don't choose one because someone else was happy and recommended him, unless you know your situations are identical. Worse, make sure those who recommend anyone to you actually use him or her.
It's not the law firm, it's the attorney. Make sure you know who you're getting, as well as their specialty/capability and fit to your problem.
Don't choose an attorney because he's a good entertainer/speaker on stage at a real estate club or any other professional, or guru, for that matter.
Obtain and check relevant references from those in your shoes.
I know this doesn’t provide you with an answer, Matthew, but it might provide a bit more certainty in your choice.
I agree with Jeff that due diligence is in order with any referral. To me, getting referrals and advice is part of the beauty of Bigger Pockets. It's a great place to start as well as REIN meetings as so many on this site have mentioned. Many people are starting from scratch, with no contacts, and you have to start somewhere. I can relate.
I can personally attest to the job my contractor/friend did on my own house in LA, and I can tell you the real estate attorney he uses. I never at that time had any use for a RE attorney, myself. My friend is a full-time contractor/investor, so I am sure he has had a multitude of situations arise over the years. Having a consultation with his RE attorney to see if he can meet your needs is what I assume one would do. That's what I would do. Also, I am sure either can provide you with client references if you need to research further. So I do give these two names freely, because I trust one personally and he personally trusts the other. Also, I have been granted permission to share their contact info. I will PM the above members who requested the info after I put my kids to bed.
Lawyers are a dime a dozen and when you find a lawyer that is AAA and been doing exact what you need for many years then to come the question can you afford him, and most investors will resort to a lawyer like Algonquin J. Calhoun to save money.
Brooke Isbell Would you be able to message me the info for that attorney and your contractor friend as well? I would greatly appreciate networking with them!
Hi all! I'm in LA as well. Could someone please PM me any "investor-friendly" attorney suggestions as soon as you can? Thanks much, and let me know if there's any way I can help you in the future! Nick