St. Augustine Real Estate Buyers and Borrowers

Buying property? We can assist with reviewing your contract, due diligence, title review, entitlements, including rezonings, variances, and related approvals. Our attorneys have extensive experience assisting buyers with due diligence and seeking approval for new development or new businesses.

Should the situation arise, our attorneys have experience with real estate litigation, including actions for damages and specific performance. Need a lease? We can draft it. Hiring a contractor? We can review or draft an agreement. Need zoning approval? We have experience with land development permitting.

 

LOAN REFINANCE

If you are refinancing your property, please tell your lender that you would like St. Johns Law Group to be your closing agent. Your lender will send us a title insurance request form to begin the closing process. Upon our receipt of your lender’s title insurance request form we will order a title search for your property. The title search will allow us to prepare a title insurance commitment outlining the steps necessary to clear title to your property, as well as a list of exceptions and/or encumbrances (easements, covenants, restrictions). The most common item required to clear title to property is the satisfaction of mortgages against the property. In order for us to obtain an official payoff quote to satisfy the open mortgage, it is imperative that you forward your account number and the name and customer service telephone number for your lender(s) as soon as possible or forward a copy of your last mortgage statement. If any of your mortgages are Home Equity Line of Credit mortgages, please do not take any further draws from your credit line.

 

In the event our title search reveals the need for any other items to clear title, we will contact you and will work to clear up minor title issues at no additional cost to you.

 

You may be entitled to a discounted rate of title insurance. In order to provide a reissue credit, we must retain in our files a copy of your prior owner’s policy of title insurance that was issued when you purchased the property. Please forward a copy of your owner’s policy of title insurance prior to closing.

 

As part of the closing process, we are also required to retain a copy of your hazard insurance (homeowners insurance) declaration page in our files. Please make sure to forward a copy of such to us at your earliest convenience.

 

As your closing date draws near, we will receive a final closing package from your lender. That package will allow us to prepare your settlement statement and other closing documents. Once your lender has approved the settlement statement, we will forward it to you for your review. Please know, however, that we are unable to release the settlement statement to you until your lender has reviewed and approved it.  If you feel there are any errors on your settlement statement, please inform us prior to closing so we may take curative action, if necessary.

 

If you do not plan on attending the closing in our office in person, please let us know well in advance of your closing date so that we are able to coordinate delivery of the closing documents to you in a timely fashion. You must have them signed in the presence of a notary public and one additional witness and they must be returned to our office no later than the day before closing. Please do not plan to use a power of attorney for the execution of documents unless you have had the power of attorney approved by our office, as the laws surrounding the use of a power of attorney are quite rigid in the State of Florida.

 

On the day of your closing please make sure to bring your driver’s license or other government issued photo identification so we may properly notarize your documents. Also be advised that we are only able to accept certified checks or wire transfers for your funds required for closing. The check should be made payable to St. Johns Law Group, Real Estate Trust Account. If you wish to wire transfer the funds, please let us know and we will forward wire instructions to you immediately. Wire transfers should be initiated no later than the day prior to closing.

 

If you have any questions or concerns about the closing process, please feel free to contact our office with any questions.