What a Texas HOA Can Do About Unpaid Dues A homeowners association in Texas has more authority than most owners realize. Unpaid assessments are not merely a billing dispute, and in some circumstances an association can foreclose on the lien securing them. The authority comes from the recorded declaration, the document filed in the county property records that created the subdivision's covenants. When you bought, you took title subject to it. That declaration typically cr
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Read more about Can an HOA Foreclose on Your House in TexasSelling an Inherited Texas House When There Is More Than One Heir Inheriting a house with brothers and sisters turns a property question into a family one. The legal side is usually more straightforward than people expect. The hard part is that every heir has to agree, and nothing moves until they do. Start by establishing who actually owns the property. If there was a will and it went through probate, the executor's authority is on record and the chain of title is clean
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Read more about When You and Your Siblings Inherit a House in TexasSelling a House You Cannot Empty A house packed with a lifetime of belongings is a common situation and rarely the one people plan for. It usually arrives with a death in the family, a move to assisted living, or a long decline nobody wanted to confront. The first thing worth saying is that the contents do not have to be resolved before you decide what to do with the property. Sellers routinely delay for months, paying taxes, insurance and utilities on an empty house, be
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Read more about Estate Cleanouts and Selling a House in TexasSelling a Texas House With an Open Insurance Claim Hail, wind and fire claims are routine in Texas, and an open claim complicates a sale in ways that are manageable if you understand who is owed what. The central question is who receives the claim proceeds. If there is a mortgage, the lender is typically named on the policy and the check is usually issued jointly. Lenders commonly hold the funds and release them in stages as repairs are completed and inspected. This
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Read more about Selling a Texas House With an Open Insurance ClaimSelling a North Texas House With Foundation Problems Foundation movement is close to a regional condition across North Texas. The expansive clay soils under much of Dallas, Fort Worth and the surrounding suburbs swell when wet and shrink when dry, and slab foundations move with them. Buyers here know this, which cuts both ways. Because it is common, a foundation issue is not automatically a deal breaker in this market. What buyers react badly to is uncertainty. A documen
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Read more about What Clay Soil Does to Dallas and Fort Worth FoundationsHOA Assessments, Liens and Foreclosure in Texas A homeowners association in Texas has more authority than most owners realize. Unpaid assessments are not merely a billing dispute, and in some circumstances an association can foreclose on the lien securing them. The authority comes from the recorded declaration, the document filed in the county property records that created the subdivision's covenants. When you bought, you took title subject to it. That declaration typica
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Read more about HOA Assessments, Liens and Foreclosure in TexasWhat a Texas HOA Can Do About Unpaid Dues A homeowners association in Texas has more authority than most owners realize. Unpaid assessments are not merely a billing dispute, and in some circumstances an association can foreclose on the lien securing them. The authority comes from the recorded declaration, the document filed in the county property records that created the subdivision's covenants. When you bought, you took title subject to it. That declaration typically cr
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Read more about Can an HOA Foreclose on Your House in TexasWhen a Texas Reverse Mortgage Comes Due A reverse mortgage lets an older homeowner draw against equity without monthly payments. The loan is not forgiven; it becomes due when a maturity event occurs, and that is usually the point at which the family first has to understand it. Maturity events are defined in the loan documents and typically include the death of the last surviving borrower, the borrower permanently leaving the home, or a breach of the obligation to ke
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