For Attorneys

You have a client who needs to sell a house, and the sale is holding up the case. Home Rescue Team is a South Florida cash buyer that closes on real property in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach — as-is, on your client’s timeline, with no commissions, no repairs, and no financing contingency. We work alongside probate, foreclosure-defense, family-law, bankruptcy, and real-property counsel. Call or text (305) 699-9763 or email anthony@homerescueteam.net.

Why the no-fee position is the point, not a limitation

Cash-buyer “attorney partner programs” are common in this market, and some of them involve payment. We would rather be direct about where we stand and show you the provisions we read, so you can check them yourself rather than take our word for it. The following is our own compliance position and a set of citations — it is not legal advice, and you will reach your own conclusions.

• Fla. Stat. §475.25(1)(h) — a real estate licensee may not have “shared a commission with, or paid a fee or other compensation to, a person not properly licensed as a broker, broker associate, or sales associate under the laws of this state … for the referral of real estate business, clients, prospects, or customers.” Two narrow exceptions exist in the statutes (a referral fee to a broker licensed in another state, and a finder’s fee of $50 or less paid to an apartment tenant); neither describes an attorney referral. The penalties sit in the §475.25(1) preamble, which lets FREC impose any or all of probation, suspension of up to ten years, revocation, and an administrative fine of up to $5,000 for each count or separate offense.
• Fla. Stat. §475.42(1)(e) and (2) — the same conduct is addressed separately in criminal terms: “A person may not commit any conduct or practice set forth in s. 475.25(1)(b), (c), (d), or (h),” and a violation is a second-degree misdemeanor. Note that this provision reaches “a person,” not only a licensee.
• Fla. Stat. §475.011(1) — the attorney exemption covers a person acting “as an attorney at law within the scope of her or his duties as such.” It is an exemption from licensure under Part I, not an authorization to accept referral compensation.
• Bar Rule 4-1.7(a)(2) — a lawyer’s own financial interest can create a personal-interest conflict where “there is a substantial risk that the representation of 1 or more clients will be materially limited … by a personal interest of the lawyer.” It is a fact question rather than an automatic bar, and it is waivable under Rule 4-1.7(b) on informed consent confirmed in writing.
• Florida Bar Ethics Opinion 02-8 (January 16, 2004) — advisory and expressly not binding, and addressed to a lawyer accepting compensation from a nonlawyer financial firm rather than to real estate, so it is analogous rather than directly on point. It permits such an arrangement only where the referral is in the client’s best interests, the lawyer discloses fully and obtains written informed consent, and the client — not the lawyer — receives the benefit of the fee. That last condition is the one most often left out of the conversation.
• RESPA §8 (12 U.S.C. §2607) — applies only where the transaction involves a federally related mortgage loan, so it does not reach an all-cash purchase with no new financing. It can reach a later resale leg where the end buyer finances. Penalties run to $10,000 and one year, plus treble the charge paid.

Home Rescue Team LLC buys property for its own account. Its principal holds an active Florida real estate sales associate license, SL3425451.

So the relationship we are proposing is the clean one: reciprocal referrals with zero dollars moving in either direction. You send us a client who needs a fast, certain sale; we send you the sellers who walk in needing probate opened, a title defect cured, a foreclosure defended, or a marital settlement drafted — and we hire counsel at normal rates when we need real legal work done.

Where we are useful, by practice area

Probate and estate administration

Vacant inherited houses bleed the estate — taxes, insurance, lawn, board-ups, break-ins. We buy in probate, coordinate with the personal representative, and close after the sale is authorized. Where heirs disagree about price, a written third-party offer is often the thing that ends the argument. We can also close on a property that still needs the estate opened, on a timeline that lets you do it properly.

Foreclosure defense

When the equity is real and the client’s goal has shifted from keeping the house to keeping the equity, we close before the sale date and pay off the judgment at closing. When it is underwater, we can pursue a short sale with the servicer. We do not contact your client about the case, and we do not offer opinions about the litigation — that is your relationship, and we stay out of it.

Family law and divorce

The marital home is frequently the last unresolved asset. A firm cash number with a fixed closing date converts an argument about value into a number both sides can accept or reject. We will provide the offer in writing to both counsel simultaneously.

Bankruptcy, debtor-creditor, and consumer

We close on properties encumbered by judgment liens, tax liens, code-enforcement fines, HOA and condo liens, and contractor liens — the payoffs come out of proceeds at closing. Where the liens exceed value, we negotiate reductions.

Real property, HOA, and title

Clouded title, heirs’ property, unreleased mortgages, open permits, and open insurance claims are ordinary work for us rather than deal-killers. If title cannot be cleared, we say so early instead of tying the property up.

Elder law and guardianship

Sales that require court authorization, and sales where the owner is moving into care and the house has to convert to cash without months of listing, repairs, and showings.

What your client actually gets

• A written cash offer, typically within 24 hours of seeing the property — no obligation, and no pressure applied to your client.
• As-is. No repairs, no inspection-driven renegotiation, no cleanouts. Personal property can stay.
• No commissions and no buyer fees. The number we quote is the number.
• No financing contingency — we are not waiting on an underwriter.
• The closing date is your case calendar’s, not ours. Roughly 15 days is typical; we will also wait months for letters of administration or a court order.
• Spanish and Italian spoken by the principal, which matters in this market.

How it works

1. You call or email us the property — address, situation, and who we are permitted to speak with. We do not contact your client until you say so.
2. We look at it and pull title, liens, permits, and code history at our cost.
3. You get the offer in writing and give it to your client. If it does not work for them, that is the end of it and nothing is owed.
4. We close through a title company, on the date the case needs.

Common questions from counsel

Will you contact my client directly?

Not unless you tell us to. Default is that everything goes through your office.

Do you need the property listed?

No. We buy directly. If listing would genuinely serve your client better, we will say so — there are situations where it does.

What if the client rejects the offer?

Nothing happens. There is no fee, no exclusivity, and no obligation on either side, and we do not chase the client afterward.

Can you close before a foreclosure sale date?

Often, if there is enough runway and title is workable. Tell us the sale date first — it is the constraint that decides everything else.

What areas do you buy in?

Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties.

Are you the buyer, or a wholesaler shopping the contract?

We buy. Where a property is a poor fit for us, we say so instead of tying it up under contract while we look for someone else.

Talk to us

Your contacts are Anthony Astolfi, founder, and Alan Epstein, Senior Partner. Meet the team.

Call or text (305) 699-9763, 8 AM–8 PM, seven days a week, or email anthony@homerescueteam.net. Home Rescue Team LLC, 4251 SW 32nd St, West Park, FL 33023.

This page is information for licensed Florida attorneys about a business relationship. It is not legal advice, and nothing here creates an attorney-client or agency relationship. Statutory and Bar citations are provided so you can verify our position yourself.