Coughlin & Gerhart, LLP, Ithaca NY

My wife & I purchased our first home in February. We used Coughlin & Gerhart. Our main contacts here were Jon Albanese & Miranda Fisher. Both were great in regards to maintaining adequate communication since we were first time homebuyers. They kept us in the loop regarding each step in the closing process & how it was progressing. While we did run into a few 'snags', Jon & Miranda helped to keep us at ease & assist with getting the correct documentation we needed. They might not respond right away, it might take them a day or two to answer an e-mail. But I promise, they WILL respond. They're busy like any other business. Be patient!

I used Jon Albanese for the closing of a house I was selling. The one good thing I can say is that his paralegal, Kate, was responsive to my emails, but I never once spoke with Jon.

In fact, I had an issue arise at closing where the buyers were asking for a concession which I indicated I disagreed with, and I never heard from my attorney. As far as I know, he did nothing to defend me, and so I was forced into a concession which it seems I shouldn’t have actually been responsible for. I think they just wanted the closing to be done.

Additionally, I needed a POA to sign for the closing, and I presented one to the attorney which they informed me would not work for signing the deed specifically (but worked for everything else?). They had me sign another POA then ultimately charged me $200 for it which I certainly never agreed to. Considering the fact that you can print these out online and fill them out yourself, this seems outrageous. There was also a surprise “overnight fee” of $90 that I was charged at closing to “send the payoff. ” From what I understand, this is not typical.

If you have a straightforward closing and don’t want to speak with your attorney, I suppose Jon would work well for you, otherwise I would recommend finding someone else to represent you.

I had a great experience with Jon Albanese and his staff at Coughlin & Gerhart in closing the sale of my house. Jon's paralegal Kate was very helpful with my many questions, and answered almost always immediately via email or phone. Jon was very helpful explaining legal issues that I didn't understand. Rhonda came to my house closing and was very professional and helpful. I'm glad I hired Jon with Coughlin & Gerhart. They made my experience very easy and smooth.