Real Estate Talk:
Identification

Know whom you are buying from and selling to

By Joseph Marovitch

Previously published October 29, 2016

Have you heard about the Brooklyn Bridge being for sale? It is a euphemism for someone trying to sell you a scam. It can be anything from a property they do not own to a beautiful home on a fault line. For our purposes in real estate, it is important to know who is selling a property.

A person who inherits a property but has not acquired the declaration of transference, cannot sell that property until they do. The seller may not know that they cannot sell that property but nonetheless proceeds to sell. The offer, counter offer and acceptance will not be valid. The buyer will hopefully find out from the notary but why go through all the hassle. Just make sure to clearly identify the seller. A broker can check who owns the house on their system and anyone can check city records. This example is an honest mistake.

A simple mistake can cost time, money and even implicate you in a crime.

There are those who do have criminal intent and may try to make dirty money clean by placing it in a property and then selling that property so that the money used, shows as clean money with taxes paid. Ill gotten money taken via scams and thievery can be placed in property to hide it. Middle men/women can use real estate for terrorist or organized crime to hide and/or invest.

The bottom line is, know whom you are buying from and whom you are selling to. A simple mistake can cost time, money and even implicate you in a crime.

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Have a great week!

Image: hjjanisch via StockPholio.net

Read also: Other articles by Joseph Marovitch