Real Estate
Cohen Seglias’ Real Estate Group has an established deal-making history representing all parties in various real estate transactions, from owners and developers to lenders, buyers, and sellers. With over 150 years of combined experience structuring and closing deals, we draft documents and negotiate real estate transactions, all while providing counsel on numerous issues affecting the outcome of each matter or project.
Our attorneys work closely with other practice areas to give our clients access to the full range of Cohen Seglias’ legal services, including Commercial Litigation, Business Transactions, Financial Services, Wealth Preservation, and Construction. This approach enables the firm to represent clients in challenging, multi-dimensional matters.
Purchase and Sale
From typical residential purchases and sales to sophisticated commercial acquisitions and complex financings, our attorneys understand the structure and art of the real estate deal. We assist both buyers and sellers with agreements of sale, entity choice and formation, financing documents, zoning and subdivision approvals, as well as tax-free and tax-deferred 1031 exchanges.
Real Estate Financing and Restructuring
Debt and financing are key components of most transactions, and Cohen Seglias represents secured creditors and investors, developers, and owners in a wide range of matters, including pursuing or preventing foreclosures, acquiring or refinancing failed projects, restructuring and completing stalled and failed projects, and other workout-related matters.
Title Insurance Services
The firm’s subsidiary company, Next Level Settlement Services, provides a full range of title and real estate settlement-related services to buyers, sellers and lenders throughout Pennsylvania.
Commercial and Residential Leases
We understand the legal and business issues confronting landlords, property managers, and property owners and commercial tenants. The firm routinely represents landlords and commercial tenants in drafting, negotiating, and enforcing leases. Our practice encompasses the full spectrum of leases, from the short-term lease of a small office suite and complex agreements for anchor tenants of large shopping centers to residential leases for projects containing just a few to thousands of units. We understand that commercial and residential leases are not one size fits all, and we provide our clients with tailored and sophisticated lease documents.
In addition, our Group provides a full complement of legal services to landlords, property managers, and owners in connection with their tenant relationships. On behalf of our clients, we handle debt collection matters and evictions, tenant disputes, fair housing matters, and everything in between.
Legal Opinions
Our attorneys regularly provide borrower and third-party legal opinions in real estate transactions and provide Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New York entity non-consolidation bankruptcy, UCC, and enforceability opinions.
Prosecution and Defense of Title Claims
Title issues often complicate the purchase, sale, and financing of real estate. We recognize these roadblocks early and provide our clients with practical remedies for these issues. Through our relationship with several national title insurance companies, we offer curative title solutions and title defenses that preserve value and the property rights of owners, lenders, and insurers. We also regularly represent title insurance companies and insured purchasers and lenders in all aspects of title insurance coverage and related title claims litigation.
Tax Assessment Appeal
Our real estate attorneys also represent commercial and residential property owners in tax assessment appeals before tax assessment appeal boards throughout the Pennsylvania. Our Group advocates for reductions in the assessed value of a property, seeks abatements from real property taxes, and defends challenges to successful market-value appeals. When necessary, our team works with experts to properly assess a property’s value, request and obtain a revaluation of a property, and achieve reductions in property tax assessments.
Condominium and Common Interest Communities
We regularly draft documentation for condominiums, planned communities, and other common interest communities, including mixed-use, commercial, industrial, and conversion condominiums, as well as large and small residential developments and fractional ownership projects. We also represent many condominiums, planned communities, and common interest communities, assisting in the day-to-day operations as well as the more complicated issues that confront them.
Preservation Projects
Our attorneys represent clients in historic preservation ventures, including preservation easements and tax credit projects. We understand the complex issues at play in these projects and deliver creative solutions for our clients.