Los Angeles Real Estate Transaction Attorneys
Legal Focus Areas
The Darvish Firm structures Los Angeles real estate deals so they close cleanly and stay out of court. From residential purchases in Beverly Hills and Santa Monica to Century City commercial acquisitions and leases, our attorneys draft, negotiate, and review the documents that carry the real risk — purchase agreements, disclosures, title, escrow, and financing. We think like litigators while papering the deal, catching the ambiguities that later become lawsuits.
Real Estate Expertise:
The Darvish Firm specializes in representing clients in real estate transactions. Elan Darvish, a practicing attorney and a California Real Estate Broker, has a proven track record and wealth of knowledge to effectively handle all types of real estate transactions. He continually provides consulting services for various lenders, escrow agents, brokers, private equity firms and borrowers in Southern California. We represent clients in all aspects of buying and selling Real Estate in California to ensure our Clients’ transactions are carefully handled to identify potential risks, and to achieve our Clients’ goals.
Real Estate Solutions:
- Preparing, Negotiating and Reviewing Purchase and Sale Contracts
- Preparing Guarantor Agreements
- Recording First Deeds
- Securitizing Collateral
- Preparing, Reviewing and Advising on Loan Documents
- Preparing, Negotiating and Reviewing Residential Leases
- Preparing, Negotiating and Reviewing Commercial Leases
- Preparing and Reviewing Easements
- Preparing and Handling Escrow Matters
- Preparing and Reviewing Assignments
- Preparing Real Estate Investment Partnerships
- Land Development
- Brokerage Representations for Buyers and Sellers
- Establishing and renegotiating commercial real estate leases
- Preparing and Reviewing Mortgages and Deed of Trust
Los Angeles Real Estate Transaction Attorneys
Residential & Commercial Purchase and Sale Agreements
Whether you are buying a home in Pasadena or a mixed-use building in Downtown Los Angeles, the purchase and sale agreement governs every material term — price, contingencies, financing, closing, and remedies on default. We draft and negotiate PSAs, including CAR-form residential contracts and heavily negotiated commercial agreements, and add protective provisions on inspection periods, contingency removal, liquidated damages, and specific performance. California treats real property as unique, so specific performance is often available where money damages are inadequate. Clear, enforceable terms up front prevent the disputes that later end up at the Stanley Mosk Courthouse. We tailor each agreement to the deal and to your risk tolerance rather than relying on boilerplate.
Commercial Lease Negotiation
Commercial leases in Los Angeles are long, one-sided, and easy to misread. We negotiate and review office, retail, and industrial leases across Century City, Beverly Hills, and Long Beach, focusing on the terms that decide cost and control: base rent and escalations, CAM and operating-expense pass-throughs, tenant improvement allowances, exclusivity, assignment and subletting, personal guaranties, default and cure, and options to renew or expand. We flag audit rights and caps that protect tenants from runaway charges, and for landlords we tighten default remedies and security. Because California landlord-tenant protections that cover residential leases largely do not apply commercially, the written lease controls — so getting it right before signing is essential.
Seller Disclosures & Compliance
California imposes some of the broadest seller-disclosure duties in the country. Sellers of residential property must deliver a Transfer Disclosure Statement (Civil Code §1102 et seq.), a Natural Hazard Disclosure, and disclosures on lead paint, Mello-Roos, and known material defects. Sellers must disclose facts materially affecting value or desirability that a buyer could not reasonably discover — a duty that survives 'as-is' clauses. Nondisclosure is a leading source of post-closing litigation. We help sellers disclose completely and defensibly, and help buyers evaluate what they received. Learn more in our guide to California real estate disclosure requirements.
Title & Escrow Review
Title and escrow are where a transaction quietly goes wrong. We review preliminary title reports and the underlying exceptions — easements, CC&Rs, liens, encroachments, and clouds on title — and coordinate with title officers to clear or insure over problems before closing. We advise on the appropriate title-insurance coverage (owner's versus lender's policies, ALTA extended coverage) and review escrow instructions so they match the negotiated deal terms. Catching a defect during escrow is inexpensive; discovering it after recording can require a quiet title action. Our review is designed to surface and resolve these issues while you still have leverage to walk or renegotiate.
Easements & Access Agreements
Access, utilities, shared driveways, and encroachments create some of the most persistent disputes between neighbors and co-owners in Los Angeles County. We draft and review express easements, access and ingress-egress agreements, shared-use and maintenance agreements, and license agreements, and we analyze prescriptive and implied easement risks before you buy. On hillside and irregular lots common in the Hollywood Hills and Pasadena, an unrecorded or ambiguous access right can make a property unusable. We ensure easements are properly recorded, adequately described, and allocate maintenance and liability clearly, so the right to use land is not left to later argument or litigation.
Financing & Loan Documents
Financing terms can quietly reshape a deal. We review and negotiate loan documents — promissory notes, deeds of trust, guaranties, and loan agreements — for both borrowers and private lenders, focusing on interest, prepayment penalties, acceleration, default triggers, and cross-collateralization. We advise on seller carry-back financing, subordination, and California's usury limits and their many exceptions. For private-money and hard-money deals common in Los Angeles, we make sure the deed of trust, notice provisions, and remedies are enforceable if the loan sours. Getting the loan documents right protects the collateral and clarifies each party's rights long before any nonjudicial foreclosure becomes necessary.
1031 Exchanges & Entity Holding Structures
How you take title affects taxes, liability, and future disputes. We coordinate with your tax advisor and qualified intermediary on Internal Revenue Code §1031 like-kind exchanges, structuring the transaction and timelines so the deferral is not jeopardized by a defective document. We also advise on holding real property in LLCs, tenancy-in-common structures, and partnerships — allocating management, transfer rights, buy-sell terms, and exit mechanics up front. Sound entity structuring and clear co-ownership agreements are among the most effective ways to prevent the partition and co-owner disputes that otherwise land in Los Angeles Superior Court. We build the ownership framework to fit your investment and estate goals.
Deal Structuring to Prevent Disputes
Most real estate litigation traces back to a document that was silent, ambiguous, or one-sided. Because our attorneys also handle real estate litigation, we structure deals with a clear view of how they fail — drafting precise contingencies, default and remedy provisions, dispute-resolution and attorney-fee clauses, and clean allocations of risk between the parties. We stress-test agreements for the scenarios that actually generate lawsuits in Los Angeles: financing that falls through, undisclosed defects, boundary and access fights, and partner disagreements. A well-papered deal is the cheapest litigation insurance available, and it keeps you out of court entirely.
Boundary & Survey Review
Recorded legal descriptions, surveys, and what is actually on the ground do not always agree. We review ALTA/NSPS and boundary surveys, fence-line and setback issues, and encroachments so buyers understand exactly what they are acquiring before closing. Boundary discrepancies are common on older Los Angeles lots and can affect buildability, financing, and title insurability. We coordinate with surveyors and title to resolve gaps, overlaps, and encroachments — through boundary line agreements, easements, or corrective instruments — while the deal is still open. Addressing a survey problem before recording is far cheaper than a later quiet title or boundary-dispute action, and it protects your ability to develop or resell.
Who We Represent
We represent every party on a Los Angeles real estate deal, aligning the documents with your side of the transaction.
- check_circleBuyers — We protect buyers through diligence, contingency, disclosure review, and title clearance — making sure you know exactly what you are acquiring and can walk or renegotiate before you are committed.
- check_circleSellers — We help sellers disclose completely and defensibly, negotiate favorable terms, and close cleanly — limiting post-closing exposure on 'as-is' sales and nondisclosure claims.
- check_circleLandlords — We draft and negotiate commercial leases that protect income and control — tightening default remedies, guaranties, expense pass-throughs, and assignment provisions across LA-area properties.
- check_circleTenants — We review and negotiate leases for LA businesses, focusing on rent escalations, CAM caps, TI allowances, exclusivity, and exit rights so you are not trapped by one-sided terms.
- check_circleInvestors — We structure acquisitions, 1031 exchanges, financing, and co-ownership so returns are protected and disputes are engineered out of the deal from the start.
- check_circleDevelopers — We handle land acquisition, easements, entitlements coordination, financing, and boundary review so development projects rest on a clean, defensible title and document set.
Serving Los Angeles & Southern California
From our office on Wilshire Boulevard, The Darvish Firm represents clients throughout Los Angeles County — including Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Century City, Westwood, Culver City, Pasadena, Glendale, Burbank, and Long Beach — and across Orange, Ventura, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties. We appear in the Stanley Mosk Courthouse and Los Angeles Superior Court locations countywide.
Request a consultation or call (310) 677-3512.
Los Angeles Real Estate Transaction Attorneys — Frequently Asked Questions
I have a broker — do I still need a real estate attorney?
Brokers manage the deal; attorneys manage legal risk. California does not require an attorney to close, but on complex, high-value, or unusual transactions, attorney review of the purchase agreement, disclosures, title exceptions, and escrow instructions can prevent expensive litigation later.
What are common title and escrow problems?
Undisclosed liens and easements, boundary and legal-description errors, unauthorized signatories, and escrow instructions that contradict the purchase agreement. We identify these before closing — while they can still be fixed with leverage.
What does a seller have to disclose in California?
California imposes broad disclosure duties on residential sellers, and nondisclosure is one of the most litigated real estate issues. Our guide to California disclosure requirements explains what must be disclosed and why over-disclosure is often the safer strategy.
Do you review commercial leases?
Yes — for both landlords and tenants. CAM charges, options, assignment rights, personal guaranties, and default remedies are where commercial leases create the most risk; we negotiate them before you are bound by them.
Do I need a real estate attorney to buy a house in Los Angeles?
California does not legally require an attorney to buy or sell a home, and many residential deals close with only agents and escrow. But an attorney adds real value on higher-value or complicated purchases — trust or entity ownership, seller financing, easement or boundary questions, disclosure concerns, or non-standard contract terms. An attorney reviews the documents that carry legal risk rather than just facilitating the sale. For a fuller picture, see our overview of what a real estate attorney does.
What is the difference between a real estate agent and a real estate attorney?
A real estate agent or broker markets property, finds buyers or sellers, and facilitates the transaction — and is generally paid on commission. A real estate attorney provides legal advice: drafting and negotiating contracts, reviewing title and disclosures, analyzing easement and financing risk, and protecting your legal rights if a dispute arises. Agents cannot practice law or give legal advice on your contractual and title rights. The two roles are complementary, and on a significant Los Angeles transaction most sophisticated parties use both.
What should I look for in a commercial lease before signing?
Before signing a Los Angeles commercial lease, scrutinize the total occupancy cost — base rent, escalations, and CAM or operating-expense pass-throughs — plus any personal guaranty, the assignment and subletting rules, tenant improvement allowance, default and cure provisions, and renewal or expansion options. Commercial tenants get few of the statutory protections residential tenants enjoy, so the written lease controls almost everything. Have the lease reviewed before signing, while you still have leverage to negotiate, rather than after a dispute arises.
How can an attorney prevent real estate litigation?
Most real estate lawsuits grow from a document that was ambiguous, silent, or one-sided. An attorney prevents them by drafting precise contingencies, clear default and remedy terms, complete disclosures, and clean allocations of risk — and by catching title, easement, and boundary problems during escrow while you can still walk. Building the deal with an eye toward how transactions fail is the most cost-effective protection available. If a dispute does arise, our real estate litigation team can step in.
Have a question about your situation? Call (310) 677-3512 or request a consultation.