Real Estate

We represent owners, investors, developers, lenders, landlords, and business tenants in commercial real estate transactions across Colorado, from acquisition and leasing through development, financing, and disposition.

Commercial Real Estate Purchases and Sales

When a business buys or sells commercial real estate, there are often important considerations that last well beyond closing. The property may house the operating company, secure the financing, or anchor a development strategy. The legal work has to account for the asset, the business, and the particular needs of each client.

We handle commercial purchases and sales for owner-users, investors, developers, and operating companies, including the transaction documents, title and survey review, diligence, financing coordination, and the entity and tax structure underneath the deal.

Where a matter calls for specialized environmental, land use, or other counsel, we are able to bring those advisors in as needed to support the transaction.

Commercial Leases

Sparks Willson advises landlords, property owners, and established business tenants on commercial leases across office, retail, industrial, and mixed-use settings.

Lease negotiations turn on business judgment as much as legal doctrine. Our goal is to build a lease structure that will fit the property, the business, and the needs of each client for the duration of the lease term.

Financing

Real estate financing documents allocate control, flexibility, and risk long after the initial closing. Loan structure, collateral packages, guaranties, covenants, intercreditor issues, and exit assumptions must be taken into account.

We advise borrowers, lenders, property owners, and guarantors on a broad variety of financing transactions in connection with acquisitions, construction projects, land development, and refinancings. Protecting the interests of the parties while leaving appropriate room for business flexibility and growth makes for a successful transaction.

Development and Land Use

Zoning, subdivision, utility and access arrangements, conditional approvals, and cost-sharing arrangements are just some of the elements that will shape the success of a development project.

Sparks Willson works alongside the engineers, planners, and architects serving our clients on land use and development matters, including zoning and permitted use questions, entitlement and approval processes, development and improvement agreements, subdivision and platting, access and utility arrangements, and the covenants and restrictions that govern how a property can be used.

Title, Survey, and Easements

Many real estate problems begin with a document recorded years before anyone currently involved owned the property — an easement that does not quite reach the road, a boundary that does not match the fence line, or a restrictive covenant that limits the intended use.

Our attorneys can assist with reviewing title commitments, exception documents, and surveys and handling the work that follows like negotiating title objections, obtaining appropriate endorsements, drafting and negotiating easements, licenses, access, and shared-use agreements, addressing encroachment and boundary issues, and working with title companies to manage the closing process.

Ownership Structures and Real Estate Entities

We assist clients with structuring and forming entities to support their real estate projects, including single-asset limited liability companies, holding structures for multi-property portfolios, joint ventures and co-investment arrangements, and tenancy-in-common ownership. The work covers operating agreements and the provisions that matter when circumstances change: capital calls, distributions, management and voting rights, transfer restrictions, buy-sell mechanics, and exit rights. We take tax planning into account and coordinate with the client’s accountants and tax advisors on structure, including like-kind exchange planning where applicable.

Construction Contracts

Scope, schedule, change orders, payment and retainage, delay and force majeure, warranties, indemnity, insurance, and lien rights are just some of the issues that can determine the success of a construction project.

Sparks Willson assists clients with reviewing and negotiating construction and design contracts, including owner-contractor and owner-architect agreements, negotiated revisions to industry form documents, subcontract flow-down terms, and the payment and lien provisions that connect the construction contract to the project financing.

We also advise on mechanic’s lien questions, including notice and filing requirements, lien waivers, and release and bonding issues. Compliance with the timing requirements of Colorado’s lien statutes is crucial.