How do I find a great RE lawyer?

[Johnny Appleseed]

I'm interested in getting professional advice before I start investing and maybe even incorporating, but I have no clue on how to find a competent RE Lawyer.

How will I know if the Lawyer is competent on a subject (RE Law) I don't know about?

[Richard F.]

Just as all real estate agents are not created equal, neither are all attorneys. In part, it depends on exactly what aspect of real estate, and at what scale.

For basic LL/tenant agreements and handling evictions, sit in court a few times, and you will see certain lawyers CONSTANTLY handling evictions. These are the guys you want for this. Also, most metro areas have one or two pre-eminent real estate specialists; with a little digging you should be able to find them. Typically, they will be involved with local RE related legislation and major cases. They charge accordingly, but are worth it for sticky situations! OTOH, the eviction specialists usually offer pretty low rates for that specific service, but should not generally be relied upon for unusual situations.

By your post, you are a noob, so you probably are not starting out with complex, multi-million dollar deals, so the eviction attorney will probably be sufficient to handle other minor contract related issues, and setting up standard corporations or partnerships. For bigger and/or more complex deals, you obviously need to research much further to find specialized business law practitioners. Even beyond that is another level of specialists involved with off-shore ownerships and serious tax avoidance issues. These are usually referred by upper echelon banking trust departments and international business law contacts.

Back to your original question, you should also seek a referral from your CPA, assuming the CPA has a focus in RE. (Bookkeepers and accountants withOUT the CPA license are NOT who you should rely on for RE activities.)