Commercial Real Estate
The firm represents clients in a broad range of real estate-related matters involving properties throughout Connecticut.
The firm represents buyers, sellers, local institutional lenders as well as out-of-state banks, mortgage brokerage companies, landlords, and tenants in a variety of real estate transactions and financings. Our clients also include residential and commercial developers, investors and title insurers.
Our experience in representing sellers, lenders, borrowers and investors enables us to understand the various needs and concerns of our clients. Our firm is able to provide legal counsel, advice and assistance across the wide spectrum of real estate matters including:
- Development and new construction projects.
- Development of residential subdivisions, condominiums and planned communities.
- 1031-Like Kind Exchanges
- Structuring of both traditional and creative financing packages.
- Contract negotiation.
- The sale, purchase and refinancing of commercial real estate
- Structuring of ownership entities.
- Industrial and commercial leasing for both landlords and tenants.
Vacation Homes
Vacation homes, beachfront cottages, lakeside retreats, mountain lodges, ski villas, and other types of vacation property are a great source of enjoyment for families, while at the same time posing unique problems for families and their owners, and future generations. Most families want to keep their vacation homes for multiple generations to use and enjoy. Planning appropriately for future ownership, and outlining responsibilities among owners for maintenance, taxes, insurance and scheduling use of the vacation home is complex, but necessary to ensure the vacation home will be there for your children and grandchildren.
Our firm’s knowledge of succession planning for business owners is well suited to help owners keep their vacation homes in the family for multiple generations. We use an entity (typically a limited liability company) as the owner of the vacation home, and draw on our experiences in estate planning, business succession planning, real estate law and tax law. Properly drafted, the limited liability company can protect the home from member’s creditors, divorcing spouses, and personal liabilities.
A detailed operating agreement covers many of the common problems facing vacation home owners, including who is entitled to ownership, who pays for maintenance, and how much, and what happens if they don't pay, who gets to use it and when, how to make decisions regarding repairs to the property, and how and when to sell the vacation home.
Like each family, forming a limited liability company structure for ownership of a vacation home is unique and can be tailored to address the concerns of each member, the physical needs of the vacation home, and potential issues which are likely to be the source of friction or conflict among family members of the next or succeeding generations of owners.
Residential Real Estate
• Purchase and Sale
At Carella Law Offices we can represent you in your sale or purchase of a new home. We appreciate the opportunity to work with you to accomplish your goals in the transaction. As your legal counsel we will prepare and/or review all documents pertaining to your interests in this transaction; advise you of the legal significance of these documents; attend the closing as your legal representative; provide you with an accounting of your funds involved in this transaction; obtain such title insurance policy or policies as may be required or that you request, and; record or cause appropriate documents to be recorded in the public land records.
With the economy today and falling real estate values, selling your home is increasingly difficult. It is even more difficult if you have an adjustable rate mortgage which has recently gone up, or if you are falling behind with your mortgage payments. If your home is worth less than you owe, if you are about to miss mortgage payments, are in default on your mortgage or have been served foreclosure papers, you still have many options available. These options include a short sale, forbearance agreement, refinancing, mortgage modification, deferral of principal or a temporary indulgence. We will help save your home from foreclosure and help you take control of your finances.
• Refinancing Your Home
You may want to consider re-financing at a lower interest rate if you purchased your home when rates were higher. Refinancing could save you money by lowering your monthly payments. Another option would be to continue making the same monthly payments so that you can pay off your home that much faster. Some other factors in deciding whether refinancing is right for you include your credit, the amount of equity in your home and the length of time you plan to remain in your home.
• Short Sales
An increasingly popular yet fairly unknown alternative to foreclosure is a short sale. A short sale exists when a homeowner wants to sell his or her home but owes more than the home is worth. Often lenders will agree to accept less than what is owed on the property if they are likely to lose even more money if they have to foreclose. This saves the lender the expenses of foreclosure proceedings and from having another REO (real estate owned) property on its books. A short sale can be a win-win for everyone involved as the homeowner gets to walk away with a short sale on their credit record as opposed to a foreclosure. Working closely with your realtor, our firm can represent your interests in bringing your lender to reasonable terms when selling your home.
• Foreclosure Rescue Scams
Foreclosure rescue scams are one of the fastest growing and most lucrative frauds which have plagued Connecticut homeowners since the early 2000s, costing homeowners in the state millions of dollars.
Several states have passed laws to prevent and/or regulate equity stripping schemes. However, Connecticut has yet to pass a law which adequately protects our residents from these types of predatory real estate practices.
These rescue artists will purposefully target vulnerable and desperate homeowners. Typically, a homeowner facing foreclosure will receive an unsolicited letter or phone call offering to refinance their home. The rescue artist will promise to "save the home" and stop the foreclosure. An initial meeting will usually follow where the rescue artist will manipulate the homeowner by inspiring hope and conveying a false sense of trustworthiness.
There are many different variations of foreclosure rescue scams. However, most rescue artists will purposefully delay the process in order to cause a heightened sense of urgency and desperation. Eventually, the uninformed homeowner will essentially sign over their property or equity or both.
If you have been a victim of such a scheme feel free there are laws designed to undo the transaction and regain your equity.
If you are having problems with your mortgage payments you should contact your lender immediately or a HUD approved housing counselor.
For more information regarding Foreclosure rescue scams please contact the offices of Attorney Carella to set up a free consultation.