"Elle" writes:
"Bill" wrote
In school you learn a lot of things. When you learn a bit
more, you learn how much you do not know. A smart person
will understand how much they do not know about things and
seek advice from an expert...

OTOH, a smart person will know that people do not qualify as
"experts" merely by holding a "professional" certification.

And hence won't pick the attorney with the biggest ad i the yellow
pages.

Your attitude sounds to me like you've never had the benefit of a
good, experienced, conscientious and thorough real estate attorney.
They do exist.

Attorneys had a virtual monopoly for centuries because the
information to which they were privvy was hard for an
ordinary person to access. But the internet's many legal
resources have meant the truth comes out: In many instances,
attorneys are no more than licensed clerks who do not
necessarily read carefully, pay attention to detail, or try
to get things done economically. Hence the market for
attorneys is much more competitive today. Their rates have
dropped. Their ads read like those of used car salespeople.

Plus attorneys do make mistakes.

For which they are insured. If they screw up big, you aren't left
sleeping in your own filth.

Since their first interest must necessarily be their income, they
are not necessarily as likely to pay as close attention to a
client's interests as the client him/herself will.

From an attorney acquaintance of mine, addressing a client:
"No one is going to care about this as much as you do."

That's true. However, imagine if you team that self interest with the
experience of a seased real estate attorney to whom you can ask
questions and make sure that your self interest is being addressed?

I think arguing against spending $300-$500 on an attorney for a decent
sized real estate transaction is pretty silly, honestly.

--
Todd H.
http://www.toddh.net/