A real estate closing attorney helps ensure that the sale of a property from one party to another is fully legal. If you want to become a real estate closing attorney, you must dedicate many years to receiving an education about law and real estate. There are a variety of skills needed to be successful in this job and only a few places to practice this type of law.
If you want to become a real estate closing attorney, you need to understand the job's main responsibilities. You primarily will be dealing with residential closings and commercial closings and must review all of the necessary paperwork to ensure that the real estate transaction is legal. Another major part of the job is performing title examinations, during which you research the history of a property to be positive that the seller is the rightful owner and there are no other claims to ownership. If there are other ownership claims on the title, it is your responsibility to solve these title issues.
There are some strict educational requirements in order to become a real estate closing attorney. For example, in the United States, you must have at least a bachelor's degree along with a Juris Doctorate from an accredited law school. This education helps you understand the law and the duties of an attorney. Attorney jobs in the United States also require you pass a legal competency test called a bar exam for the state where you plan to practice law. Many real estate attorney jobs also require multiple years of experience as a practicing lawyer before taking the position.
There are many skills needed to become a real estate closing attorney. The chief skill is an encyclopedic knowledge of real estate law. From the closing process to the deed, the escrow, refinancing and more, you must know all of these terms from a legal perspective. A real estate closing attorney also must be highly organized, because property transactions operate on a strict closing date, and you must complete all of your work before that day. As a real estate closing attorney, you also must be an excellent researcher who keeps track of any developments and changes in real estate law.
If you become a real estate closing attorney, you most likely will work in one of two places. Banks and lending institutions probably are the biggest employer of real estate closing attorneys because they commonly have one or more on their staff. A law firm is another possibility, because when banks and lending institutions do not have a staff attorney, they hire them from law firms.
