Massachusetts Real Estate Lawyer

A Guide to Finding a Good MA Real Estate Lawyer

There’s one skill that’s essential when it comes to real estate law: negotiation. And if you’re in the state of Massachusetts, you’re going to want a Massachusetts real estate lawyer who has that exact skill to a tee.

This can go for a landlord or a tenant. Either way you’re looking at it, getting the right attorney for the job is a crucial task and one that takes considerable steps.

What Are Those Steps?

To find a good MA real estate lawyer, a client has to do these basic things:

• Research
• Field Work
• Free Consultation
• And Then Make the Choice

Seems simple enough? We’ll get into more detail on each of these, but just know that the Massachusetts real estate lawyer won’t be the only one working. The client will work on finding the right MA real estate lawyer for the job. And that’s where it all begins….

The First Step: the Research

No one can find a reputable Massachusetts real estate lawyer without research. That’s a known fact. But the key is to be well-informed about how to research for them.

Starting off, a client could always check the phone book. Easy enough. But no client should stop there. The trick to finding the true golden nuggets in Massachusetts real estate lawyers is to examine those ads you’ll find in the business section.

Keep an eye out for those capital words, exclamation points, clever language. Steer clear of those. That’s a pretty good sign of inexperience. It’s actually against legal ethics to advertise the ‘world’ to a client, promising everything short of the kitchen sink.

The ones you need to jot down are the simple listings – addresses, phone numbers, web sites, e-mail. Not all legitimate listings of MA real estate lawyers will have all of these, but the more the better.

After gathering five, maybe six, listings, jot down all that information into a “shortlist,” taking you to the very next step:

The Free Consultation

This is priceless, because all Massachusetts real estate lawyers offer this. Take your shortlist and call each attorney to set up a free consultation. A client is always encouraged to do something like that. Attorneys are always available to talk about something on the phone, but a client will especially talk to all these MA real estate lawyers simply to set up an appointment.

From there, the free consultation will give you boundless information about each lawyer. Everything from education to previous clientele. A prospective client will learn about the reputation for all prospective Massachusetts real estate lawyers on a very practical level, seeing how they act in their own office, how they handle their own staff, how personable they really are.

It’ll tell a client a lot about whether or not he or she may be a good candidate for the case.

Learning rates is important as well – because you may hear terms like “retainer” fee or “contingency” fee.

The common mode of payment is the hourly rate, which can work for many clients, but both the “retainer” fee and “contingency” fee? You need to know about those….

A retainer fee is essentially a down payment on services even before services start and generally could lend to the belief that the attorney is so experienced that the attorney’s got the clout to even offer that fee.

Whereas a “contingency” fee really lends to a lawyer’s skills and talents, in that it’s a fee only paid after the case is resolved. Typically, though, if involving a settlement amount, the lawyer gets a percentage of it. And the reason why it’s a telltale sign of talent in the court room is because lawyers generally won’t get paid – unless the client does!

That says a lot about a lawyer’s confidence, and can swing a client’s decision to hire that lawyer right away.

Some typical questions a client may ask include:

• How many years of experience do you have?
• Do you have experience trying cases in court?
• What kind of clients do you normally represent?
• Where did you graduate from law school?
• Are you available to take my case?
• WILL you take my case?
• If not, can you find me a lawyer that will?

And believe it or not, there are numerous other questions a client could ask. The point of the free consultation is to gather as much information as possible about the MA real estate lawyers on the list.

This, of course, will lead you right into the next step:

See the Attorneys Actually Work the Court Room

Often a client may get information about upcoming hearings any of the attorneys on the shortlist will be attending. This is good, because that client can then get some more insight on the quality of the lawyers by doing this:

Visit the court rooms. Watch them in action.

This can lend to a lawyer’s reputation in a big way as a client will be able to examine how a lawyer operates in the court room. Seeing how the judge responds can speak a million words as to whether or not any particular lawyer will be able to negotiate without breaking a sweat and hopefully coming to a favorable decision on the client’s end.

In the end, it’s about trial experience. And there’s no better way to see it firsthand.

Take your time with it, though, because the court system can get pretty convoluted; and you certainly have to make sure all the i’s are dotted and t’s are crossed and you have everything together to show up on time and sit in the back so you can watch the action happen.

You Then Make the Decision

From there, it’s all up to you. You have some of the best information, and all of it was for free! Now the choice is yours about which attorney to choose from. You’re right smack in the middle of Massachusetts, and your case is waiting to be heard.

Just make sure you have the right lawyer by your side.