For about five hundred dollars paid to the guardian of the incompetent woman and an equal amount in court and lawyer’s fees, he obtained a quit claim deed of her interest that satisfied the requirements of the corporation that was to insure the validity of the title.  The day after the purchase was consummated, the new owner was offered a price for the property that would have given him a substantial profit above his investment and expenses, had he cared to sell.

Under such circumstances, however, the buyer should be sure the property is a good enough investment to be worth so much time and trouble and he should never embark on such an undertaking without the best possible legal advice.  Most important of all, his contract to buy should be so drawn that ample time is allowed for the work of perfecting the title.  There should also be a provision allowing him to withdraw from the contract and to regain his option money, if clearing the title proves impossible or there is too great expense.

Another detail that should be taken into account, especially with land once used for farming, is the possibility of old, half forgotten rights of way.  In the legal argot, a right of way is a permission to cross property that has road frontage to reach fields, pasturage, wood lots, or the like which are otherwise without means of access.  To be binding, of course, such agreements must have been recorded.  Where they date back half a century and have been forgotten and unused for many years, lawyers are sometimes careless in their title search and overlook them.  This is a serious omission since they can suddenly be revived to the discomfort of a totally innocent buyer.

Some years ago a man bought a simple farmhouse as a summer home.  One spring he discovered that a neighbor had acquired a cow and, night and morning, was driving it across his lawn and flower garden.  At his indignant protests, the neighbor sarcastically pointed out an old gateway in the stone wall dividing their property and cited an agreement almost a century old that provided for a right of way for cattle across what was now lawn and flower garden.  Of course reviving this right was a case of pure spite and eventually there was a law suit.  The man with the cow came to terms, his own of course, and for a cash consideration relinquished his cow driving rights.  Meanwhile the owner of the property had been put to some expense and plenty of annoyance.

With the final decision to buy a piece of property financial details come to the fore.  An “all cash basis” is not uncommon these days and often brings a sizable reduction in the asking price.  Where a mortgage is desired, fifty per cent of the purchase price must be cash for house and land, or the entire amount on unimproved land.  With the latter, the mortgage lender will expect you to provide at least half of the total cost of the land and the proposed house.  Gone are the days when country homes could be bought with first and second mortgages and very little cash.  This type of financing was tried and found wanting during the late depression, since it led many people to commit themselves to payments they could not continue if reverses were experienced.