Real Estate Law · Pittsburgh

A Deed Review Before You Close. A Litigation Attorney When Something Was Wrong All Along. Every Pennsylvania Real Estate Topic We Handle.

By Stephen H. Lebovitz, Esquire · Real Estate Law · Pittsburgh, PA

Real estate problems arrive at the worst possible time. A title defect that surfaces at closing. A seller who did not disclose what they knew. A deed recorded with the wrong name. A permit that was never pulled. An assessment that does not reflect what the property is worth. Each of these is a different problem with a different answer. Every real estate topic we handle in Pennsylvania is listed below, organized by the situation that sends people looking.

Transactions & Sales Agreements

Standard PAR forms protect brokers, not buyers or sellers. Material risk in inspection rights, financing contingencies, and default remedies often goes unaddressed until it is too late to negotiate.

Seller Disclosure

The disclosure obligation attaches before the agreement is signed. A seller who delivers disclosure late may have given the buyer a right to cancel that the seller did not intend to create.

Seller Disclosure in Pennsylvania

Real Estate Contract Disputes

A missed closing date is not automatically a breach in Pennsylvania unless the agreement says time is of the essence. Many buyers and sellers act on assumptions the contract does not support.

Residential Closings

Pennsylvania transfer tax is 2% combined in Allegheny County, split between buyer and seller by default, but the split is negotiable and many buyers do not know that before signing.

Inherited Property & Family Real Estate

Pennsylvania requires probate or a court order to clear title on inherited real estate, even among family members. Informal transfers and handshake arrangements create title problems that surface decades later.

Partition Actions

You cannot force a sale through partition if you do not own the property directly. An heir who owns only an LLC interest or estate interest cannot petition. The ownership structure determines the remedy.

Easements & Property Access Rights

Shared driveway obligations run with the land, not the owner. A buyer who did not read the easement agreement inherits the maintenance obligations and cost-sharing requirements of every prior owner.

Property Assessment Appeals

The 2012 base year and Common Level Ratio mean your assessment may be legally challengeable even if it matches what you paid. Most property owners do not appeal because they do not know the standard.

Investment & Purchase Agreements

Assignment and double-close structures create personal liability exposure without proper entity layering. Verbal capital alignment with a co-investor is not enforceable without a written acquisition agreement.

Real Estate Investment Agreements

Real Estate Litigation

By the time most real estate disputes reach an attorney, the contract and the steps each party has already taken have determined much of what is still recoverable. Early involvement preserves options.

Lebovitz & Lebovitz, P.A. · Based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, near the Parkway East. Serving Allegheny County and southwestern Pennsylvania since 1933.

Stephen H. Lebovitz is a real estate attorney in Pittsburgh who represents buyers, sellers, heirs, and co-owners in Pennsylvania title disputes, partition actions, contract enforcement, and property ownership conflicts.

Real Estate Law · Pittsburgh

Title Problems and Ownership Disputes Do Not Resolve on Their Own.

Purchase agreements, deeds, financing terms, and ownership structure determine what can be corrected later and what becomes expensive litigation.

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Real Estate Issues

Real estate disputes are leverage problems. What the contract says, how the deed is titled, and what has already happened determine what remedies remain. The best moment to act is before those options close.