If adjacent property is unrestricted, developer can build high-rise
Q : The property next door to me is unrestricted, and a developer is talking about building a high-rise building on it. What can I do to stop this from happening? A : If he owns it and it is unrestricted, he can do anything he wants. It may not be comforting, but there are a lot of high-rise structures in Houston that are adjacent to residential areas, and they don’t seem to have affected property values that much.
Talk to your real estate agent and see what they say. Q : My mother died unexpectedly and had no will. I have one brother and we don’t get along at all. How should this be handled? A : You need to have an administrator appointed to handle the distribution out of the estate. If she owned a home, you’ll need to properly convey it, which will require legal help also. There is one thing for sure. If you don’t handle this issue quickly, it will not get better, only much worse. Get thee to competent legal help. Q : I have decided to sell my home. I have an area that is a large closet, and I have stored my wine there while I have lived here, always referring to it as my “wine cellar.” My real estate agent says I can’t refer to it as a wine cellar since it isn’t cooled and humidified. Is that right?
I thought this would be a great marketing tool. A : It depends on your real estate agent. They may be worried about this marketing tool being a misrepresentation. If someone is looking for a house with a wine cellar, this may not be what they are looking for. Real estate agents also have advertising rules that may come into play here, if the advertising is considered misleading. Have a good discussion with the agent, but we think they are just being cautious. Q : I’ve been a real estate broker for years, and have always like the legal side of the business, so I’ve decided to become a real estate lawyer. How does one go about doing this? A : Well, you must have a college degree, then take the LSAT exam and see if you can get into an accredited law school. Law school takes about three years to complete. When you graduate, you then must take the Bar Exam and pass it. It only lasts three days or so. Then you must get a job or start your practice. You’ll need clients to pay your rent. After five years of practice that is over 50 percent real estate matters, you can qualify to take a second Bar Exam to specialize in real estate. You must pass this one, too, and it also takes a few days to complete the exam. This process takes quite a few years and of lot of work.