Real Estate Transactions & Litigation

REAL ESTATE TRANSACTIONS & LITIGATION

We at Norman Hanson DeTroy understand that each real estate related transaction and project is unique. Our experienced real estate law practice group effectively represents developers and other clients in a broad range of real estate matters. Our clients include property owners, developers, lenders, debt and equity investors, landlords, tenants, brokers and property managers. All of our real estate lawyers have litigation experience that is used to our clients’ benefit. The aim of our representation of clients in is to meet their expectations consistently and efficiently in all cases.
Among the wide-ranging services our Practice Group provides are the following.

1. Purchase and Sale Transactions. The core component of our practice is the representation of sellers and buyers in Maine real estate transactions. These transactions are extremely diverse and include hotels, restaurants, commercial office buildings, industrial and factory space, retail properties, raw land for development, commercial forest and timber land and oceanfront and lakefront homes.
2. Real Estate Development. We have served as counsel for investors forming limited liability companies to acquire real estate for future development and have managed land-use due diligence in doing so. Our projects include multi-million dollar commercial office buildings and shopping center ground leases. We work effectively with teams of professionals from other disciplines, including architects, land-use planners, environmental and civil engineers, general contractors and tax professionals, in developing projects to meet investor expectations.
3. Zoning, Land Use and Project Permitting. As part of our customary due diligence for specific projects, we undertake comprehensive assessments of permitting requirements and manage the process of securing necessary permits through filings and appearances before municipal boards, state agencies and other regulatory bodies. We also defend appeals from the issuance of permits relating to our project. Our litigation experience stands us in good stead in contested permitting matters.
4. Condominium Projects. We serve as counsel to many large condominium developments in Maine. We have dealt with condominium conversion ordinances and regularly manage the affairs of condominiums for the declarants, boards of directors and executive committees and for individual unit owners.
5. Real Estate Finance. We represent both lenders and borrowers in commercial and residential real estate transactions on a regular basis, coordinating all required title details, permitting, land-use compliance, and corporate authorizations. We prepare and review loan documents for our lender clients and borrowing clients.
6. Conveyancing and Title Services, Easements and Subdivision Issues. We regularly handle real estate transactions involving specialized conveyancing issues, such as reforming poor legal descriptions, addressing unique access issues for property owners and utility carriers and in configuring real estate projects to conform to Maine subdivision statutes. We oversee all elements of title abstracting associated with conveying instruments that we prepare and utilize our highly trained paralegals with substantial real estate experience.
7. Title Insurance Procurement. We are affiliated with Security Title, LLC, which underwrites title insurance for owners and lenders throughout the State of Maine. Security Title is an agent for First American Title Insurance Company. As a result of this affiliation, we have knowledge of specialized title insurance endorsements to manage risk in real estate transactions. We also have the practical experience needed to assess remote title risks and to insure over them, providing our clients with peace of mind as they close on their transactions.
8. Real Estate Litigation. We handle all manner of real estate litigation, including quiet title actions, actions for declaratory judgment, easement disputes, trespass, priority disputes and the litigation of equitable subrogation claims for refinancing lenders. We also routinely bring actions for declaratory and emergency injunctive relief to prevent the obstruction of easements benefiting our clients’ properties. We serve as counsel in Maine to national title insurance underwriters, including principally First American Title Insurance Company.
9. Representation of Foreign Investors in Maine Real Estate. One of our attorneys practices international law and was the Special Advisor to former Governor Baldacci for a trade mission to Germany. With his special multi-cultural understanding, we have successfully represented a number of foreign investors in Maine real estate projects. We understand that foreign investors come to the table with different views of return and risk, and we work with them to achieve their goals. Adrian was appointed.