Do you need a real estate attorney to close in Maine?

What does the law require?

I found no Maine statute in the real estate, conveyancing or brokerage chapters that says an attorney must prepare the deed, run the closing or be present. Three rules shape the answer anyway.

• Only Maine lawyers practice law. Section 807 bars anyone not admitted to the Maine bar from practicing law “or demand[ing] or receiv[ing] any remuneration” for it. It allows people to manage their own cause in court. The records of the Board of Overseers of the Bar are prima facie evidence of who is a member (§ 807(4)).
• Agents are not lawyers. The Maine Real Estate Commission says it cannot give legal advice, enforce contracts or mediate disputes, and that questions about the legal obligations of parties to a contract should go to a private attorney (Commission FAQ). It says the same of a listing agreement, which is a contract.
• Licensed professionals have their own rules. Brokerage requires a real estate license (32 M.R.S. § 13003), and a person who negotiates residential mortgage terms for pay needs a mortgage loan originator license unless an exemption applies. One exemption covers a licensed attorney who negotiates loan terms for a client as an ancillary matter, if no lender pays the attorney (9-A M.R.S. § 13-103).

Who conducts closings in practice?

Maine’s statutes do not name who must host the closing, and I found no official source that gives a typical arrangement. What the law does set are the documents that must change hands:

Who prepares the deed, searches the title and disburses funds depends on the lender, the title insurer and the parties. Ask your lender who will close the loan and ask the settlement provider whether a lawyer is involved. See title insurance and closing costs in Maine.

What does an attorney cost?

No official source I read sets or reports a Maine fee. Real estate fees are negotiable: the Commission states the brokerage commission has no standard rate and is negotiable. For attorneys, ask for a written fee quote before you hire, and ask whether it is flat or hourly and what it covers.

When is an attorney worth it anyway?

The law leaves these choices to you. A lawyer’s review can be useful when:

• The deal departs from the standard forms, for example a lease with an option to buy, an installment contract, or seller financing.
• The title search shows a lien, an easement or a boundary question. Compare with land survey costs.
• The property is reached by a private road, or sits in a shoreland or flood zone, since the seller must disclose those facts (seller disclosure in Maine).
• A seller or buyer disputes the earnest money. The Commission cannot decide who gets a deposit; it can only point to its trust-account rules (earnest money).
• You are selling an inherited home or a home held in a trust.

To check that a person who offers legal help is a Maine lawyer, use the Board of Overseers of the Bar.