It is not unusual for some of our clients to be presented with the following scenario. An owner of a single family house or apartment falls behind on his mortgage and his lender commences a foreclosure proceeding while a sale is pending. In an apartment scenario, the cooperative board pursues a…
From time to time our firm is asked if a promise to make a Will leaving one’s inheritance to a particular person is enforceable. Such promises occur in the following situations. A relative spends a lot of time with another, perhaps even doing substantial favors for the person, who repeatedly says…
Our firm is often called on to assist homeowners whose properties may be in foreclosure. This can occur when a person falls behind in their mortgage payments to a bank or other lending institution. Because of the high volume of such foreclosures in New York State over the past several…
Are you planning to get engaged this Valentine’s Day? While legal concerns may not be particularly romantic, our firm offers the following legal advice pertaining to issues that arise upon marriage in this post. Legal issues arise whether it is a first or second marriage and may become more complicated if…
Some of our trust and estate clients have adult children who are disabled. The child may have been born with a disability, such as cerebral palsy, making the parents accustomed to allowing for the disability while knowing that such disability will never go away. In the alternative, the disability may…
Many legal issues arise in New York relating to rental apartments. Disputes between landlords and tenants are extremely common, and have been discussed in many posts on this blog. Extremely prevalent are situations in which the living conditions of the apartment have deteriorated to the point where the apartment may not be…
Some of our trust and estate clients have asked us how to best protect their beloved pet in the event of their disability or demise. Pets can be just as important as children when planning one’s estate. These family members can be adequately provided for in a legal fashion. Traditionally, pets have…
Many of our firm’s clients own private houses in Westchester County, in Brooklyn (Kings County), the Bronx, and Queens County. These may be one or two family houses, and many of these houses are part of the rental market, rather than owner-occupied. Renting a private house involves many legal issues that…
Those people who are new to the real estate closing process in New York may not be aware that the amount delivered by the purchaser at closing is not as simple as the amount of the downpayment as subtracted from the purchase price. Adjustments are to be made for real…