Real Estate

Dirt.  When we were little, we played in it.  Most of us probably even ate some of it (which our parents said wouldn’t kill us and might even help our immune systems develop).  It got under our fingernails and onto our shoes – which we proceeded to track all over our mother’s nice clean floor.  Remember the first time you climbed a dirt mound and stuck a rake handle into it declaring yourself “King of the Hill?”  Us too.  But, we’re older now and we don’t play with dirt anymore.  Or don’t we?

At PFS, we love dirt.  We love what people build on dirt.  We love helping people build things on dirt.  We love helping people rent out their dirt and, eventually, selling their dirt to someone else.  We help turn our clients’ creativity and vision into reality by assisting in nearly every aspect of the real estate business.  Developers, syndicators, investors, lenders, REITs, landlords and tenants, property managers, and brokers — our real estate attorneys provide comprehensive services to all of the above, working together with attorneys in our business, finance, and tax practice groups.  We specialize in structuring complex transactions to fit our clients’ business and tax requirements, and forming the appropriate entities to help them reach the desired outcomes.  Our services include:

• Acquisition and disposition of property — from raw land to commercial, industrial, retail, residential, hospitality and mixed-use space
• Preparation and negotiation of financing and other credit-related documents for both borrowers and lenders — including construction financing, permanent financing, commercial mortgage-backed securities, bridge, subordinate and mezzanine debt, syndicated credit facilities, sale and leaseback structures, bond financings, swap agreements, and letters of credit
• Loan restructuring, workout and foreclosure
• Fund formation and joint ventures
• REIT formation, structure, and compliance
• Leasing for both landlords and tenants
• Construction contracts and contracts with other professionals
• Property management issues
• Tax deferred exchanges — including traditional exchanges, reverse exchanges, and tenancy-in-common arrangements
• Oil and gas projects

Real estate law has come a long way from the days of exchanging bundles of sticks to signify the transfer of title.  You need to be aware of the rules, regulations, ordinances, variances, easements, etc., that any real estate project may encounter.  Even the smallest molehill may become a mountain when pressed with an impending closing or loan maturity.  We will help you remove these boulders so that your path to success is clear.

In short, we will climb that hill with you so that when we arrive at its peak together, you can plant that rake handle with confidence and without getting too much dirt on your hands.