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Studies the law of real property and gives in-depth treatment of the more common types of residential real estate transactions and conveyances, such as deeds, contracts, leases, and deeds of trust. Focuses on drafting these various instruments and studies the system of recording and searching for public documents. An overview of landlord tenant law will also be included.

Text: Daniel F. Hinkel, Essentials of Practical Real Estate Law,
(West Publishing second edition).

Course Objectives
1. Students will describe the basic principles of substantive real estate law.
2. Students will recognize, define and correctly use basic real estate terms.
3. Students will draft the basic instruments used in common residential real estate transactions.
4. Students will correctly summarize the legal effects of the provisions contained in the instruments described in 3, above.
5. Students will successfully conduct limited title examinations.
6. Students will be identify and correctly resolve ethical issues posed in the context of hypothetical problems akin to those faced by professionals working in the area of real estate law.
7. Students will differentiate between the roles of attorneys and paralegals in real estate transactions, and will identify activities that, when performed by a paralegal, constitute unauthorized practice of law.
8. Students will be able to integrate and to apply the knowledge gained in the course to solve hypothetical real estate related problems that might be faced by a client, as well as to assist an attorney in each phased of a residential real estate closing.

SAMPLE COURSE OUTLINE
Each session below represents 3 classroom hours.
Session # 1: Course overview. Explanation of grading criteria. Categories of legal property. Introduction to the law governing real property. Students work in small groups to correctly categorize types of property and to spot particular issues pertaining to real property.

Session # 2: Common law estates in real property. Fee simple. Fee tail. Life estates and remainders. Students work in small groups to identify the estate created by hypothetical sample grants, and to describe the distribution of property rights (title, possession, use and control) created by these grants.

Session # 3: Encumbrances, Easements and Licenses. Students solve problems requiring them to identify situations where land has been encumbered, to correctly identify the type of encumbrance created, and to describe the consequences for potential sellers and buyers of the land.

Session# 4: Forms of Title and Joint Ownership. Lecture and question/ answer session on different ways of holding title, including joint tenancy, tenancy in common and tenancy by the entirety. Consequences of shared ownership in cases of bankruptcy, sale or death. Fiduciary duties. Small group issue spotting and hypothetical problem solving.

Session # 5: Real Estate Contracts. Required elements of a real estate contract. Legal requirements. Internet research demonstration: find relevant statutes. Small group analysis of sample provisions. Review material and work through hypothetical problems for
exam # 1

Session # 6: Preparation and Review of Real Estate Contracts. Students will review sample provisions of real estate contracts, projected on an overhead screen. Students will describe the effects of each provision, and will spot errors. Use of the Internet to find sample forms will be demonstrated. Students will be assigned to draft a contract for a hypothetical client: to be graded as part of Exam # 1.

Session # 7: Deeds: Lecture and question and answer session on the elements and effects of a valid deed. Sample deeds will be shown on an overhead screen. Students will work in small groups to describe the effect of assigned provisions and to spot any errors. Cases involving the effects of provisions in deeds will be presented. Students will apply the holdings, reasoning by distinction and analogy, to slightly different situations.

Session # 8: Financing Sources and Legal Aspects of Real Estate Finance. Lecture and question and answer session on various types of real estate financing. Students will work in small groups to identify appropriate sources of financing for hypothetical clients.

Session # 9: Mortgages and Deeds of Trust. Lecture and discussion on the purpose of a mortgage or deed of trust and on the effects of their provisions. Students will use Virginia forms to identify specific provisions of a deed of trust, to identify the effects of each provision, and to spot errors. Review material and work through hypothetical problems for Exam # 2.

Session # 10: Title searching. Students will perform title searches on line and, when feasible, will visit the Office of the Recorder of Deeds. Students will solve hypothetical problems requiring them to spot defects in a chain of title.

Session # 11: Title insurance. Students will work in small groups to identify the effects of the provisions of title insurance policies.
Overview of real estate closings.

Session # 12: Real Estate Closings. Students will examine copies of the documents commonly used in a residential real estate closing, including the required HUD-1 Statement. The term project, requiring each student to prepare a set of documents needed to effectuate a closing for a hypothetical client in the Commonwealth of Virginia will be assigned.

Session # 13: Ethics in Real Estate Law. Government Regulation of Real Estate Transactions and Closings. Lecture and questions answer session about the ethical duties of each participant in a real estate transaction, including sellers, buyers, brokers, lenders, attorneys, title searchers and insurers, attorneys, and paralegals. Virginia and federal disclosure rules. Internet research demonstration: finding relevant statutes and regulations. Small group issue spotting and problem solving sessions.

Session # 14: Overview of Landlord Tenant Law. Internet research: finding relevant statutes. Students will participate in small group issue sporting and problem solving sessions. Ethical duties in landlord tenant law. Fair leases and over-reaching. Unauthorized practice and landlord-tenant law. Landlord tenant course and alternative dispute resolution.

Session # 15: Condominims, coops, and planned unit developments. The legality of restrictions on deeds. Students will study sample documents, find relevant statutes on the Internet, and work in small groups to draft sample provisions for a planned unit development. Review and problem solving for final exam.

Session # 16: Course evaluation. Review of Final Exam. Sample questions from the NALA (CP/CLA) real estate exam. When possible, guest lectures by real estate brokers, attorneys or paralegals.