Sunrise Real Estate Attorney

The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team represents property owners, investors, landlords, and families in Sunrise and across Broward County who are caught in real estate disputes, from failed closings and co-ownership fights to title clouds and lease conflicts. The firm also serves clients in Palm Beach County, including Boca Raton and West Palm Beach, and handles Florida property matters for owners who live in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut.

Anyone searching for a Sunrise real estate attorney is usually past the point of casual questions. A buyer will not close. A seller is holding a signed contract and a deposit dispute. A sibling wants out of an inherited house, or a former partner is holding title to something you paid for. These are problems with a clock on them, and several Florida deadlines are shorter than people expect.

Below is what actually matters in a Broward real estate dispute: which claims exist, how fast they expire, which court hears them, and what to do before you pick up the phone.

Why Choose the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team for Sunrise Real Estate Disputes

The Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team is a business and real estate litigation firm serving Broward County, Palm Beach County, and South Florida. Andrew M. Schwartz, the firm’s founder, was admitted to The Florida Bar in 1989 and has spent 37 years in litigation. He earned his undergraduate degree at Emory University in 1986 and his law degree at the University of Miami in 1989.

Senior Counsel Sundeep Nath, a Northwestern-trained litigator, adds years of experience in business and real estate cases in both state and federal courts. That matters in South Florida, where a property dispute can end up in a Broward circuit courtroom or in the Southern District of Florida, depending on the parties and the claims.

Proof of this work is recent. After a five-day bench trial in Broward County, the circuit court issued a 32-page final judgment awarding our client specific performance of a commercial real estate contract. That result reflects the kind of case the firm takes on: contract-driven disputes where the exact wording of the agreement and the parties’ history decide the outcome.

The firm works as a true legal team, so everyone on your matter knows the file. Calls are returned within 24 hours under a strict policy, and conference calls are scheduled at times that suit everyone involved. Andrew’s view is that clients often think they want a hyper-aggressive lawyer, when what they really want is someone who acts as the situation requires and keeps costs sensible. Our attorneys are experienced in mediation and arbitration as well as courtroom litigation, and for out of state owners the firm handles the local court appearances so you do not have to travel for every hearing. A significant part of the practice also comes from referrals by other attorneys.

Real Estate Problems We Handle for Sunrise Owners and Investors

• Failed Closings and Purchase Contract Disputes: Buyers who refuse to close, sellers who back out, and fights over deposits all turn on the contract’s wording and the parties’ conduct. Remedies can include damages or an order forcing the sale to go through.
• Partition of Co-Owned Property: Former business partners, siblings, unmarried couples, and investors can ask a Florida chancery court to divide property or order it sold and the proceeds split. Inherited property may fall under special heirs property rules.
• Quiet Title and Title Disputes: When someone else holds a deed, conveyance, or claim that clouds your ownership, a quiet title action asks the court to cancel the competing evidence and confirm who owns the land. It also works for owners who need to separate themselves from title to a property.
• Commercial Lease Disputes: Disagreements over rent, defaults, build-out obligations, and termination rights come up constantly between Broward landlords and business tenants.
• Landlord and Tenant Matters: Nonpayment, lease violations, and tenancy terminations all follow strict notice rules under Florida’s landlord-tenant statute, and a defective notice can sink an eviction.
• Disputes Between Co-Owners of Investment Property: When LLC members or partners own real estate through an entity, the fight is often as much about the operating agreement as the property itself, including misused funds and blocked sales.
• Injunctions to Freeze a Sale or Transfer: When property or proceeds are about to be moved, temporary and emergency injunctive relief can hold the status quo while the case proceeds.

What to Do in the First Days of a Real Estate Dispute

Start by gathering paper. You want the signed contract and every amendment, the deed, any title commitment or policy, closing statements, lease documents, and every email and text exchanged with the other side. Real estate cases are won on documents, and the version you saved early is often the one that matters.

Stop negotiating in writing without advice. A casual text conceding a point or offering to “work something out” can be quoted back at you. Keep communications short, factual, and civil until a lawyer has read the contract.

Then check the clock. A specific performance action has a one-year limitations period, which is the shortest and the one most often missed by buyers who spend months waiting for a seller to come around. A contract claim founded on a written instrument has five years, while an oral or implied contract claim has four. Rescission has four years, and fraud runs four years from discovery, capped at 12. Negligence claims, including some claims against professionals, now carry a two-year period for causes of action arising after the March 2023 amendments. If a title agent, surveyor, or other professional contributed to your loss, that shorter window may apply to them.

Landlords face their own deadlines. For unpaid rent, Florida requires a written demand and a three-day wait, excluding weekends and court-observed legal holidays, before the landlord may terminate. Other lease violations that can be cured require a seven-day notice, and violations that cannot be cured allow a seven-day notice of termination without a cure period. Accepting partial rent after posting the notice does not automatically waive the landlord’s rights, but it creates traps that must be handled properly, either by issuing a receipt stating the balance due, depositing the funds into the court registry when filing, or posting a fresh notice.

Know where the case will be heard. Real estate disputes involving Sunrise properties are generally filed in the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, which sits in and for Broward County. Claims up to the county court limit go to county civil court, while larger disputes and anything involving title, partition, or injunctions go to circuit court. Broward also maintains a complex business division within the circuit for large business and construction litigation and certain entity dissolutions, and a case can be filed directly into it under the circuit’s administrative order. Federal court, with a courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, becomes an option when the parties and claims support federal jurisdiction.

Partition and Quiet Title in Florida: How These Cases Actually Work

Partition is the exit door for co-owners who cannot agree. Under Chapter 64, these actions are heard in chancery. The complaint must describe the land, identify the owners and where they live, and state what share each holds. If the court orders partition, it appoints three commissioners, chosen by the court unless the parties agree. If they report that the land cannot be divided fairly, the court may order a public sale to the highest bidder and divide the proceeds by ownership share. When a sale is allowed on credit, at least one-third of the price must be paid down unless everyone consents otherwise.

Heirs property gets different treatment. In those cases, a court may not order a partition in kind unless commissioners have weighed the statutory factors and found that dividing the land would prejudice the cotenants as a group. The practical effect is protection for families who inherited a house and do not want an investor forcing an auction.

Quiet title works differently. Chapter 65 lets a person claiming legal or equitable title ask the court to cancel a conveyance or other evidence of title held by someone who is not the rightful owner, and the case may be filed in any county where part of the land sits. The plaintiff must trace title back at least seven years before filing unless the court orders otherwise. Where the dispute stems from a fraudulent attempted conveyance, the statute allows summary procedure and calendar priority.

Adverse possession is the flip side. Without color of title, a claimant must show seven years of actual, continuous possession under a claim of title, and must file a return with the property appraiser that includes a full legal description. With color of title, the instrument must be recorded in the county, and seven years of continuous possession are still required. Separately, a suit to recover real property fails unless the plaintiff or a predecessor was in possession within seven years before filing.

When the Property Is Tied Up in a Business Breakup

Many real estate fights in Sunrise are really partnership fights. Two investors buy a building through an LLC, one stops contributing, and the other discovers rent has been going elsewhere. Florida’s LLC statute gives members a path to judicial dissolution when managers or members are deadlocked and irreparable injury is threatened, when assets are being misappropriated or wasted, or when it is no longer reasonably practicable to carry on under the operating agreement. The court may appoint a receiver or custodian after a hearing, or order a buyout of the petitioning member’s interest.

Corporations have a parallel track. A shareholder can seek dissolution in circuit court, and the corporation or other shareholders may elect to purchase the petitioner’s shares at fair value. If the parties agree on value and terms within 60 days after the first election is filed, the court enters an order on those terms. Before filing, check the operating or shareholder agreement for a deadlock sale provision, because one initiated before the court finds grounds may control instead of dissolution.

Sunrise Real Estate Attorney FAQ

How long do I have to sue over a breach of a real estate purchase contract in Florida?

A claim on a written contract has a five-year limitations period. An oral or implied contract claim has four years. If you want the court to force the other party to close, that specific performance claim has just one year, so it should not wait.

Can a court make a seller go through with a sale?

Yes. Courts can order specific performance when a contract is valid and the buyer is ready to perform. The firm secured a final judgment of that kind in a Broward commercial real estate case after a five-day bench trial.

What is a partition action?

It is a lawsuit asking the court to divide jointly owned property or, if division is not practical, to sell it and distribute the proceeds according to each owner’s share. Partition cases belong in chancery under Chapter 64.

Can one co-owner force the sale of a house the others want to keep?

Generally, a co-owner has the right to seek partition. For inherited property, the heirs property statute adds protections and procedures before a forced sale, so the answer depends on how title was acquired and who holds the interests.

What does a quiet title action accomplish?

It asks the court to determine who owns the land and remove competing claims or documents that cloud title. A successful judgment can cancel a conveyance held by someone who is not the rightful owner.

Do I need a lawyer to handle a deposit dispute after a failed closing?

If the deposit is significant or the other side is contesting liability, yes. Deposit clauses, default provisions, and attorney fee terms in the contract determine who keeps the money, and a misstep early can limit your remedies.

How much notice does a Florida landlord have to give before terminating for unpaid rent?

The landlord must deliver a written demand for payment or possession, and the tenant has three days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and court-observed legal holidays, before termination is allowed. A defective notice can derail the case.

Does accepting partial rent end a landlord’s right to evict?

Not by itself. But the landlord must handle it properly by giving a receipt noting the balance and due date, paying the partial amount into the court registry upon filing, or serving a new notice for the reduced amount.

Which court would hear my Sunrise real estate case?

Most are filed in the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit, which sits in and for Broward County. Smaller-dollar contract claims may belong in county civil court, while title, partition, injunction, and larger claims go to circuit court. Federal court is available only when jurisdictional requirements are met.

I live in New York and own a Broward property with a partner. Can you handle the case remotely?

Yes. The firm regularly represents clients from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, handles the local appearances, and keeps you informed at each stage so travel is kept to a minimum.

Is it worth litigating, or should I try mediation first?

Often mediation is worth trying, particularly where the relationship or the property’s value is at stake. Our attorneys are experienced in mediation and arbitration as well as trial, and we pursue the path most likely to meet your goals at a reasonable cost.

Can I stop a co-owner from selling or moving assets while the case is pending?

Possibly. Florida courts can grant temporary and emergency injunctive relief to preserve property and company assets while a dispute is resolved, if the legal requirements are met.

Serving Real Estate Clients in Sunrise and Throughout Broward County

We represent property owners in Sunrise and the neighboring Broward communities of Plantation, Davie, Lauderhill, Tamarac, Coral Springs, and Weston. The firm also serves clients in Fort Lauderdale, Pompano Beach, Deerfield Beach, Coconut Creek, Margate, Parkland, Hollywood, and Pembroke Pines, along with other cities and neighborhoods across Broward County.

North of the county line, we work with owners and investors throughout Palm Beach County, including Boca Raton, Delray Beach, Boynton Beach, and West Palm Beach. Many of our clients live in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut and own homes, rental buildings, or commercial property here, and we take on those disputes as readily as those of local residents.

Talk With a Sunrise Real Estate Lawyer About Your Dispute

If you are weighing a lawsuit over a contract, a shared property, a clouded title, or a lease, the sooner someone reads your documents, the more options you keep. A Sunrise real estate lawyer from the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team can tell you which deadlines apply, which court fits, and whether negotiation or litigation makes more sense for your situation.

Call the Andrew M. Schwartz Legal Team to schedule a consultation. We return calls within 24 hours, and we will give you a straight read on where you stand.