Attorney Real Estate Law

Real Estate Law

Real Estate Law

Our attorneys handle all aspects and phases of real estate transactions and our record of success in providing sophisticated legal services and advocacy has made Hellmuth & Johnson a recognized authority in the industry. Whether it be a sale or purchase transaction, a complex development involving entitlements, financing and construction, or working with property owners to optimize and protect their investments, our clients rely on our help to achieve their goals. While only 3% of Minnesota attorneys are certified specialists in any field, 85% of our real estate attorneys are MSBA Certified Real Property Law Specialists. This distinction reflects our commitment to excellence and the dedication and expertise that our clients find so valuable.

Our wide range of real estate industry services include:

  • Purchases and Sales: Our team effectively and efficiently helps clients to successfully purchase and sell real estate through drafting and negotiating purchase and sale agreements, reviewing title, participating in the due diligence process, assisting with financing, and ensuring that transactions close.
  • Land Use and Development: We work with our clients to structure, negotiate and successfully complete real estate development projects for commercial, retail, office, mixed-use, industrial, multi-family, and residential developments. Our experience and connections allow us to build consensus among owners, architects, lenders, and government staff to obtain all manner of necessary land use approvals, permits, and agreements with various government entities. We effectively guide projects from start to finish.
  • Financing and Investors: Having a robust banking and finance practice allows us to apply those skills for property owners and negotiate the best possible loan terms and documents. Our attorneys routinely guide clients though the financing process with banks, life insurance companies, HUD and other lenders. We also represent developers in creating investor funds for financing commercial and multi-family projects, including Opportunity Zone Funds.
  • Property Tax Appeals: We actively contest real estate valuations and pursue ad valorem tax appeals. Experience in this niche area and knowing the process and rules are critical to obtaining great results in a cost efficient manner.
  • Construction: Our extensive construction law practice representing contractors, suppliers and design professionals adds value to our client’s real estate and development transactions. With vast experience drafting and negotiating all types of construction and design contracts our real estate clients benefit from our deep construction law experience.
  • Leasing and Landlord Law: We represent owners and tenants in all market sectors, including retail, office, industrial, special-use and multi-family leasing. Our attorneys advise commercial and residential property managers and landlords and commercial tenants in a variety of real estate transactions and disputes. From drafting solid leasing documents to initiating eviction proceedings and enforcement judgment decrees, we partner with clients every step of the way to help safeguard their real estate assets.
  • Homeowner Associations: Our practice in this area extends from the development and formation of homeowner associations to ongoing representation. In addition to working with associations directly, our attorneys represent and work with property managers, service providers, builders and developers of condominiums, townhomes, cooperatives and single-family communiti As the “go to” firm for homeowner association law, our developer clients enjoy a seamless integration between our association and real estate development groups.  
  • Dispute Resolution: We handle both real estate transaction and litigation. Our team of litigators has partners with our real estate and construction attorneys to handle complex real estate disputes regarding development, land use, financing, construction defects, contract claims, pre-suit engineering investigations and related issues.
  • Culture of Collaboration
    Our firm culture of collaboration provides our clients with unparalleled knowledge, free-flowing legal resources and the kind of responsiveness needed to seize-the-moment in the midst of development, financing, construction, and property optimization.


Experience

Representative Real Estate matters include:

  • Hellmuth & Johnson Building: Naturally, Hellmuth & Johnson handled the construction of its own building from start to finish including acquiring the land, city approvals, construction phase, and financing.
  • Globe Life Field (New Texas Rangers Stadium): Our construction attorneys represented the contractor who installed the stadium’s retractable roof.
  • Parkway 25 Apartments: Hellmuth & Johnson handled this from start to finish including acquiring the land, demolition of existing structure, obtaining city approvals, connecting the client with the architect and general contractor, all matters related to construction, and handling the financing through a HUD loan.
  • Represented a major property owner with regarding the restoration of a historic building and the retrofitting of modern HVAC systems.  Hellmuth & Johnson’s investigations revealed that the general contractor who designed the HVAC had failed to incorporate specific building details into its ultimate design.  With the help of engineers Hellmuth & Johnson identified the solutions and cost to incorporate the solutions retroactively into the system.  All of which resulted in a pre-suit mediation and settlement of the claim.
  • Hellmuth & Johnson has represented general contractors in a breakdown of communications between their customers during the execution of the contract and completion of the project.  Our attorneys have internal protocols for resolving disputes regarding deadlines for completion, change orders, correction of errors discovered during a project, and dispute resolution without the litigation process.  Typical parties involved in these resolution processes may include the general contractor, subcontractors, design professionals, and property owners.
  • Hellmuth & Johnson litigators have also been actively involved in petitioning municipalities for the approval of development and construction projects which are atypical for a particular setting.  This has included zoning petitions, litigations with the municipalities regarding unfair rejections of permit, zoning and variance applications, and resolving disputes related to PUD plans which have been rejected or revised unfairly.  Hellmuth & Johnson has also worked closely with various historical agencies in order to obtain approval for construction and development projects related to additions and renovations of historic properties.

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Thought Leadership

Community

Our attorneys serve the local community through the following affiliations:

  • Minnesota State Bar Association Certified Real Property Law
  • Construction Lawyers Society of America
  • Minnesota State Bar Association
  • Hennepin County Bar Foundation
  • Fourth District Ethics Committee, which provides recommendations to the Office of Lawyers’ Professional Responsibility on ethics cases
  • National Association of the Remodeling Industry, Minnesota Chapter (NARI-MN)

Past Seminars