Our Practice Areas
Ward & Taylor, LLC provides complete transactional legal representation throughout Delaware and neighboring Pennsylvania counties. From residential home closings and commercial developments to estate planning and Delaware LLC formation, our attorneys protect your rights, capital, and family legacy.
Residential Real Estate & Title Services
Buying or selling a home is one of the most substantial financial transactions of your lifetime. At Ward & Taylor, our residential real estate team combines flexible scheduling, transparent communication, and meticulous legal diligence to ensure a flawless settlement.
Under Delaware law, real estate closings must be conducted by an attorney admitted to the Delaware Bar. We guide you from the initial Agreement of Sale through deed recording and title policy delivery.
Specific Transactional Services We Provide:
- ✓ Contract Drafting & Addenda: Preparing tailored real estate contracts, mortgage contingencies, and inspection addenda.
- ✓ Agreement of Sale Legal Review: Protecting your earnest money deposit and explaining critical default and timing provisions.
- ✓ Property Vesting Guidance: Advising on Joint Tenancy with Right of Survivorship, Tenancy in Common, or Tenancy by the Entirety for married couples.
- ✓ Title Examination & Cloud Clearance: Resolving municipal liens, tax judgments, unreleased prior mortgages, and estate probate defects.
- ✓ Boundary Survey & Easement Review: Confirming legal property lines and evaluating utility or access right-of-way easements.
- ✓ Deed & Closing Package Preparation: Drafting deeds of conveyance and closing statements (ALTA / Closing Disclosure) in full compliance with Delaware transfer tax mandates.
- ✓ Lender Loan Coordination: Reviewing mortgage promissory notes, deeds of trust, and ensuring lender underwriting prerequisites are met.
Delaware Good Funds Compliance
To protect all parties in real estate closings, Delaware law governs the form of funds accepted at settlement:
Funds Under $10,000.00
A personal check written by the buyer is legally acceptable.
Funds $10,000.00 or Greater
Must be delivered via Bank Wire Transfer, Certified Check, or Cashier’s Check.
Ward & Taylor never changes wiring instructions via email. Always call our settlement desk at (302) 225-3350 to verbally verify instructions before initiating any bank wire.
Commercial Lifecycle Services
- 1. Acquisitions & Dispositions: Structuring Letters of Intent (LOIs), purchase/sale contracts, and commercial lease agreements.
- 2. Due Diligence & Feasibility: Comprehensive review of environmental reports, municipal zoning compliance, permits, and cross-easements.
- 3. Commercial Loan Documentation: Drafting borrower/lender agreements, security instruments, and Delaware legal opinion letters led by Attorney Ryan Jornlin.
- 4. Commercial Title Insurance: Large-scale title examinations and customized ALTA commercial policy endorsements.
Commercial Real Estate Law
Ward & Taylor represents commercial property owners, regional developers, institutional lenders, and commercial tenants throughout New Castle County, Kent County, and Sussex County.
From multi-family apartment communities, retail shopping centers, and office buildings to industrial parks and agricultural tracts, our commercial attorneys deliver sophisticated due diligence, sound structuring, and closing escrow execution.
Through our affiliated company, Best Abstract, LLC, we seamlessly coordinate multi-site commercial closings spanning both Delaware and Southeastern Pennsylvania.
Comprehensive Estate Planning & Elder Law
Estate planning is vital for every family, regardless of asset size. We help you establish clear directives to protect loved ones during lifetime incapacity and ensure orderly distribution of wealth upon death.
Last Will & Testaments
Designate beneficiaries for real estate and personal assets, nominate trusted executors to manage your estate, and establish legal guardianship for minor children.
Revocable Living Trusts
Maintain complete control over assets while avoiding the delay and expense of Delaware probate court. Ensure private, seamless asset transfer to heirs.
Durable Powers of Attorney
Appoint a trusted fiduciary to manage financial, tax, real estate, and banking matters if illness or unexpected incapacity prevents you from doing so.
Advance Healthcare Directives
Articulate medical treatment preferences, end-of-life care decisions, and appoint a healthcare surrogate with HIPAA disclosure authorization.
Probate & Administration
Guiding executors, personal representatives, and family members through Delaware Register of Wills filings, inventory accounting, and creditor notices.
Veteran Legal Services
VA-AccreditedLed by Robert Wolfgang Jr., Esq., a VA-Accredited Attorney, offering specialized counsel on veteran survivor benefits, military pensions, and multi-state veteran property transfers.
Estate Planning Consultation Intake Form
Complete the intake below and our estate planning department will contact you to schedule a confidential consultation.
Delaware Business Formations (LLCs)
Delaware is world-renowned for its business-friendly legal environment, flexible corporate statutes, and esteemed Court of Chancery. For real estate investors, developers, and entrepreneurs, forming a Delaware Limited Liability Company (LLC) is the gold standard in liability containment and asset insulation.
Ward & Taylor assists clients with complete entity formation services, ensuring your business structure aligns seamlessly with your real estate acquisition strategies.
- ✓ Drafting and filing Certificates of Formation with the Delaware Division of Corporations.
- ✓ Authoring customized Limited Liability Company Operating Agreements.
- ✓ Securing Federal Employer Identification Numbers (EIN) from the IRS.
- ✓ Structuring holding companies and single-purpose real estate acquisition entities.
Ward & Taylor — Secure Client Portal
Clients managing entity structuring, commercial operating agreements, and Delaware filings can access password-protected corporate records and transaction vaults via our secure client portal.
Title Examination & Insurance Protection
Title insurance is an indemnity contract that protects property purchasers and mortgage lenders against financial loss resulting from title defects existing prior to the closing date.
What Title Insurance Protects Against
Even the most thorough 60-year county land search cannot uncover hidden matters outside the public record. Title insurance protects you against:
- ✗ Undiscovered heirs asserting competing ownership claims.
- ✗ Forged deeds, fraud, or impersonation in prior chains of title.
- ✗ Clerical recording mistakes in courthouse records.
- ✗ Unrecorded easements, utility encumbrances, or boundary overlaps.
- ✗ Outstanding liens, unreleased mechanics' claims, or tax judgments.
Lender's Policy vs. Owner's Policy
Lender's Policy (Mandatory for Loans)
Protects solely the mortgage institution’s loan priority up to the unpaid balance. Decreases as the mortgage is amortized and ends when the loan is paid off. Provides zero coverage to the homeowner.
Owner's Policy (Protects the Buyer)
Protects the homeowner’s equity and legal ownership rights. Paid as a single one-time premium at settlement with no recurring annual fees. Remains in effect for as long as you or your heirs hold an interest in the property.
Ready to Begin Your Legal Representation?
Connect with our legal team in Wilmington, Middletown, Dover, Rehoboth Beach, or Bethany Beach today.