REAL ESTATE PRACTICE GROUP

Overview
Cummins & White, LLP’s Real Estate Practice Group enjoys an excellent reputation for service, and our lawyers are known for their ability to respond to the changing dynamics of the California real estate market. We deliver a full complement of transactional and litigation services involving the acquisition, sale, financing, development and leasing of real property, including consideration of issues arising from construction projects, land use, zoning and environmental concerns.

We represent real estate developers, lenders, health care providers, architects, engineers, general contractors and subcontractors, homeowners and homeowner associations, landlords, tenants, property managers, and investors. Clients benefit from our acumen as seasoned lawyers, who have hands-on experience in all aspects of acquisition, development and disposition of commercial and residential properties.

Our Real Estate Practice Group emphasizes prompt, cost-effective service. Each client matter is analyzed and staffed appropriately. When issues outside the "real estate box" arise, we draw on the entire firm’s expertise to explore options and develop strategies that will achieve the desired result.

Real Estate Transactions
Cummins & White lawyers handle all aspects of commercial and residential real estate transactions – from project concept through completion and beyond. We negotiate and prepare documents for the formation of real property development and/or ownership entities such as limited liability companies, limited partnerships, tenancies in common, joint ventures, general partnerships and corporations.

We work with borrowers and lenders in virtually every type of real estate financing. Our lawyers negotiate and prepare acquisition and development loans, construction loans, and permanent financing or refinancing for clients. We also help attract lenders, prepare real estate investment offering materials, and advise clients as to potential tax consequences.

We provide advice and assistance at every stage of project development, including real estate financing. Our lawyers have successfully structured transactions involving regional shopping centers, industrial parks, health care facilities, hotels, office buildings, condominium projects, and single-family homes. We take a proactive role and, as needed, conduct onsite visits, review zoning laws, apply for variances and conditional use permits, prepare escrow instructions and review title reports.

Cummins & White lawyers facilitate purchase and sale agreements, exchange agreements, license agreements, easements, declarations of covenants, conditions and restrictions (CC&Rs), construction and subcontract agreements, and subordination agreements. We handle commercial and residential leases, assist clients in procuring tenants, and provide general advice relative to ongoing business operations.

In the highly specialized health care arena, our lawyers understand the unique issues health care regulations impose on real estate transactions and litigation. We draw on an array of resources, from our own research archives to on-line sources to provide hospitals and physicians with timely, focused advice relative to the full spectrum of real estate regulations in health care.

Real Estate Management
Cummins & White’s lawyers are familiar with all types of commercial and residential real estate management issues. We proactively guide and counsel homeowners, condominium associations, and professional property managers as to their duties and obligations. To help clients save costs, our lawyers attend association board meetings on a selective basis, and also invite clients to hold their board of directors meetings at our offices.

Important aspects of real estate management involve building repairs, changes in the CC&Rs, lease terminations/ renewals, financial restructuring, and risk management. Our lawyers work in tandem with clients to support the ongoing viability of real property from daily management concerns to workouts to the disposition of troubled properties. Always, we strive to give our clients sound, common sense business advice that works within the unique dynamics of the real estate industry.

Real Estate Litigation
Our lawyers have extensive experience in real estate litigation, and our ability to achieve desired results is enhanced by our substantive understanding of the transactional side of real estate law. We enjoy an excellent track record for our ability to handle construction disputes, construction torts, and construction defect litigation. We represent buyers, sellers, owners, general contractors, subcontractors, suppliers, architects, engineers, bonding companies and insurance companies in all aspects of real estate disputes, including construction torts, construction defect and failed transaction litigation.

Our lawyers handle a wide variety of claims related to the planning, design, engineering construction and financing of projects, including: office buildings, hotels, industrial parks, governmental projects, condominiums, health care facilities, and regional shopping centers. We handle claims which involve mechanics’ liens, damage and delay, as well as acceleration costs involving managers (project, engineering, construction), contractors, subcontractors, and commercial vendors. The firm is also prepared to arbitrate or litigate cost overrun disputes for owners, purchasers and contractors.

In the construction defects arena, Cummins & White’s lawyers know that one problem can rapidly escalate into a host of others. That is why we work closely with clients to identify problems and then seek their creative resolution. During litigation, we capitalize on our negotiation strengths, and join with other defendants to strategically segregate and resolve issues, and to obtain prorated agreements to save defense costs. The firm maintains a roster of experts with proven track records and uses them appropriately to help settle disputes or win cases.

Cummins & White represents both landlords and tenants in commercial and residential unlawful detainer actions. We combine the talents of our paralegals with our attorneys’ negotiation skills to achieve cost effective results. Our legal services also extend into workouts, foreclosure and bankruptcy.

A Final Word
At Cummins & White, we combine attention to detail with creativity to get tangible results that work for our clients. Regardless of the fluctuations and variables that attenuate the real estate industry, our goal is to protect our clients’ interests so that they may enjoy the fruits of their real estate ventures.