The Law Offices of Peter Sverd, PLLC

Great learning for professional service providers of ever stripe. I have followed Managing Partner Forum for a long time and I recently discovered this video- it is an absolute "gem." Enjoy!

It's never too early for your small business to get legal advice- unless of course, it is too late. Call us to learn about our small business advising services. An ounce of prevention can save a large amount of pain.

Terrific article. An ounce of prevention can avoid pounds of pain down the road.

Your favorite real estate broker has presented you with a listing agreement to rent your beautiful condominium unit. The document presented to you looks like the standard form that you've signed many times before and you conclude that the terms are common and standard in the industry. Without giving it much thought you glance at the terms and leaf through the pages convincing yourself that you are reading and understanding the implications of each provision. In less than two ...minutes, you sign the agreement and wait for your next tenant to arrive at your doorstep. The rental listing agreement you just signed contains a provision that makes your real estate broker the ‘procuring cause’ in the event that the tenant that they locate for you ends up purchasing the property from you. Yes, that means you will owe the broker a real estate commission if your new tenant eventually purchases the property from you. This very clause exposed our client to over $150,000 in real estate commissions for a sale that occurred over seven years after the tenant originally took possession. The court’s have long upheld these provisions and have awarded the brokerage its commissions for work they never 'actually' performed in selling your unit. The courts have also determined that the statute of limitations in these instances (6 years in New York) does not begin to run until the transfer of title to the tenant occurs. Talk about a bitter pill to swallow. Read your rental listing agreements carefully, and negotiate. As the property owner you have bargaining power. Strike-out this provision in the listing agreement when you come across it- it can only hurt you. Each listing agreement is different, which is why you must read the document presented to you carefully. See more