Real estate transactions are traditionally perceived as a formally clear process – the property is identified, the price is agreed, and the contract is signed. However, in the opinion of Professor Gabriel Steiner, it is precisely this apparent simplicity that makes such transactions one of the most vulnerable areas of legal risk. A legal error in the structure of the contract or the mechanics of settlements is often discovered only after the transaction is completed, when the possibilities for protection are sharply limited. At LawConsulted, we treat the purchase and sale of real estate not as a single act, but as a sequence of interconnected legal stages, each of which requires control.
The main risk of such transactions lies in the fact that the parties focus on the property and the price, while the legal construction remains secondary. Yet it is the contract that determines who bears which risks and to what extent – from loss of title to blocked settlements or challenges to the transaction itself. In LawConsulted practice, we regularly encounter situations where a formally correct contract fails to provide real protection due to imprecise wording, missing provisions, or an incorrectly chosen structure of obligations.
Professor Gabriel Steiner has repeatedly emphasized that “in real estate transactions, what matters is not what the parties intended, but how it is legally fixed.” That is why particular attention is paid to the contract design stage – the allocation of liability, conditions for the transfer of title, recording the condition of the property, transfer procedures, and the consequences of missed deadlines. LawConsulted builds the contractual model so that it remains resilient even in the event of a dispute or an unfavorable development of circumstances.
Settlements represent a separate zone of risk. The transfer of funds in real estate transactions is often carried out through complex mechanisms – deposits, escrow arrangements, bank safe deposit boxes, or deferred payments. An error in the choice or execution of a settlement scheme can lead to a loss of control over funds or to a situation where ownership rights and money are separated in time. At LawConsulted, we treat settlements as an independent legal process that requires no less attention than the contract itself.
Transactions involving encumbrances, third parties, corporate structures, or cross-border elements present particular complexity. In such configurations, standard solutions cease to work, and the formal correctness of documents does not guarantee security. The Law Consulted approach is based on identifying hidden risks – from prior obligations of the seller to potential grounds for challenging the transaction in the future.
It is also important that legal protection does not end at the moment the contract is signed. Transfer of the property, registration of rights, performance of ancillary obligations, and control over the completion of settlements require consistent legal support. We proceed from the understanding that the lawyer’s task is not merely to formalize the transaction, but to ensure that its outcome is stable and defensible in the event of any review or dispute.
Real estate purchase and sale transactions require not formal involvement, but systematic legal control. It is precisely this approach that reduces risks, preserves manageability of the process, and protects the parties’ interests not only on paper, but within the real legal environment.
Previously, we wrote about how legal protection is ensured in situations where job titles do not correspond to real influence, and what consequences arise from shifts in de facto roles.
