Attorney Thomas McGlaughlin’s Experience In Real Estate Both As An Attorney And Prior To Working In This Arena

In this article, you will learn:

• Attorney Thomas McGlaughlin’s background
• How he entered the arena of real estate law
• What to talk to your real estate attorney about

Before I became an attorney, I would help my dad with running the rental units and other real estate activities when I was a kid. It made my interest in real estate begin pretty early in life. My father then became a realtor, so he worked with a builder in doing spot-lot developments in the area where I grew up, and he was pretty successful at it, which further fed my interest in the industry. I actually worked a little bit from a managerial and planning perspective as a contractor. That was going on when I was going to law school and continued a little bit after.

I’ve been a lifelong golfer, I grew up working at a golf course, and I’ve attempted to build a couple of golf courses and golf course communities with some other folks that I worked in the industry. In some of those processes, good or bad, they never panned out the whole way, but they were learning opportunities where I learned a lot. And then by the time I got out of law school, I knew I enjoyed real estate, so I worked for attorney that did fair amount of real estate business as well at a title company, so that kind of fed it a little more as far as my interest in the industry. After that, I worked for a home builder for three years as an in-house counsel. We were doing between 300 and 400 homes a year, so when you see that volume of transactions, you learn a lot about the industry in the very short amount of time.

So, when I started my own practice, real estate was definitely one of the practice areas I focused on. It’s something in my life that I’ve just loved and enjoyed, so I developed a lot of relationships with contractors in different areas of building. So, I feel like that’s the area where I’m probably most passionate about what I do.

Types Of Real Estate Commonly Handled By Attorney Thomas McGlaughlin

Most of what I work with is residential. I’ve done commercial work, commercial leases, and reviewed contracts, so it’s not like I’ve got no experience in the area, but the clients that come to me now in the last four or five years have been residential real estate clients, and they come again with a whole host of goals; anything from buying a new home, selling their home that they’re in, buying an investment property, or they’ve had contract issues or construction issues with the contractor. Those are the general things that seem to come to me most.

The Matters Someone Should Be Discussing With An Experienced Real Estate Attorney Before Taking Steps To Buy Or Sell Residential Property In Pennsylvania

Each transaction’s going to be different. If it’s a seller coming to me saying “Hey, I want to sell, but I’m not sure how to get started” and, “Do I need a realtor,” their answer may be yes, you should probably get a realtor. I have friends that are relators, I have acquaintances that are realtors, and they’re in different areas of where I practice, so I can certainly refer them. I don’t get anything by doing that, I just do it because I know the person, I trust them, and I wouldn’t refer them if I didn’t trust them. But I also want to make sure that people understand, especially the way the last year-and-a-half has gone, going to home depot and getting a for sale by owner sign for $50, putting it in your front yard with your phone number on it, you’ll be shocked at how many times your phone rings.

So, the question then really comes down to you have a transaction that you need to complete once you find a party to buy it. Understanding those aspects of a real estate transactions before you make any decisions, and it’s really important, in my opinion, to speak with somebody like myself who has a legal background and experience in real estate. I think it gives you the broadest understanding of things that you need to consider, and in today’s world, when you’re going to buy or sell, it’s extremely important to do a consult with me. I charge for my consults, but I charge a very discounted rate for an hour. I charge $75 for an hour currently, and you can cover a lot of ground about a real estate transaction in an hour. That decision could help you increase the amount of money that you’re going to get from the transaction in the end tremendously if you understand that what we would go over in that consult.

For more information on Real Estate Law In Pennsylvania, an initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (717) 990-7178 today.