California passed dozens of housing-related laws in 2026, and most take effect January 1, 2027. Some help homeowners directly, such as cheaper ADUs, stronger insurance protections and a bigger property tax break for disabled veterans.…
Legal, Escrow & Contracts
Disclosure problems are the most common reason California home sales end up in a dispute after closing. The rule is simple to say and harder to follow: tell the buyer about anything you know that…
Once your offer is accepted, escrow becomes the neutral hub where your money, loan funds, title work, and closing documents all come together before the sale is official. Understanding how escrow and title work in…
Your earnest money deposit and your contingencies are two sides of the same coin: the deposit shows you are serious, and the contingencies are what keep that money protected while you do your due diligence.…
When someone passes away owning a home in California, the family faces hard decisions — keep, sell, rent, or remodel — often while grieving. How those decisions play out depends almost entirely on one thing:…
The California Residential Purchase Agreement — the "RPA" — is the contract behind almost every home purchase in the state. It is both your written offer and, once the seller signs it, the binding agreement…
California's standard escrow period is 30-45 days — but how long your specific escrow takes depends on the complexity of the transaction, the speed of your lender's underwriting process, and how quickly all parties respond…
Contingencies are the contractual provisions in a California purchase agreement that give buyers the right to cancel and receive their earnest money back if specific conditions aren't met. They are both the buyer's most important…
"AS-IS" is one of the most misunderstood terms in California real estate — both sellers who use it and buyers who accept it frequently misunderstand what it does and doesn't mean. The critical reality: in…