How do I use a power of attorney to buy or sell property?

A Power of Attorney is a legal document that allows a person (the Donor) to name another trusted person (the Donee, or more commonly, the Attorney) to access, sell, or utilize their assets on the Donor’s behalf. A Power of Attorney may be used to complete a real estate sale or purchase. In many cases, the Power of Attorney is intended to be used only in the event that the Donor is incapacitated or unavailable, but depending on the terms of the Power of Attorney document, it may be usable by the named Attorney at any time.

If one of the parties on either side of a real estate transaction plans to use a Power of Attorney to complete the transaction, they must disclose this as early as possible to the other party. The party using the Power of Attorney will have to present the original signed document to their lawyer so the lawyer can inspect the document and certify that it appears to be a validly executed legal document. The Power of Attorney document must be scanned into the computer and registered with Teraview, and the party on the other side of the transaction should be provided with the registered document for inspection.

There is always a risk that a Power of Attorney is fraudulent, so it is important for all parties involved to be vigilant in their inspection of the document. Be sure that the document is properly signed, that the powers being exercised by the Attorney are actually provided for in the document, that no restrictions preclude its use, etc.