There’s a reason there are so many attorney jokes and why many people talk badly about attorneys – and that reason is because the majority of them are dishonest and will rip you off in a heartbeat. And please don’t think I make that accusation lightly or that I don’t have story after story to back it up.
For instance, a close friend of mine works at a law firm. She makes about $20 per hour and the attorney bills her out at $80 an hour. The other day she told me she spent seven hours researching pointless information which wouldn’t help a client’s case. Yet when she asked the attorney if he wanted her to keep doing the research, he told her to keep going for another several hours.
When I hear story after story like this, it makes my blood boil because I can’t stand dishonest people, and because in the past I’ve been ripped off myself, when I was a new real estate investor who didn’t know any better.
So now let me share with you how to avoid attorneys…
First off, you do need quality contracts in the real estate business, but you can get these by networking with successful investors in your area and asking them to let you use the contracts or by paying them a few dollars for the contracts.
Secondly, if you want to change a clause in a contract, you don’t need to hire an attorney to type in some fancy clause, which nobody will understand. You can simply write in plain English what you’re trying to accomplish.
Thirdly, if something goes wrong in your real estate business try to talk it out with the other person to solve the problem without having to resort to legal action. I know of people who’ve hired attorney’s to help them with evictions and to recover past money and I bet it ends up costing them more than they were able to recover.
For example, I’ve never had to do an eviction in my life.
However, I have had tenants who were unable to pay rent. I simply told them that if they left the house in broom-clean condition within one week, that I wouldn’t sue them for the back rent they owed me. These tenants moved out and I was able to quickly re-rent the property.
But let’s say that something has occurred where you have no choice but to hire an attorney, what should do you? Interview multiple attorneys’ and let them know they work for you and you’re the boss. Make sure you get a fixed price quote. Never, ever pay an attorney on an hourly basis- this is where almost all of them will rip you off. If an attorney won’t give you a fixed quote, then that’s your first clue they’re a crook.
I truly hope you heed my advice about this topic because it could save you a small fortune over your lifetime. Personally, I do whatever I can to avoid attorneys and will only use one as an absolute last resort.
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