Believe it or not, the lawyer thing is state by state. When I purchased my house in Texas there wasn't one needed and I didn't feel I needed one as all the forms were just that... standard forms with blanks filled in. The real estate agent was working for me as I had my own and the seller had hers. All of the paperwork was completed by the Title Company, which is where the closing was held.

I didn't have a GOOD agent, but that's another story I won't get into.

One other thing, if you end up with funds in escrow - do make sure you understand the escrow agreement. Example: The seller gave me $3,000 at closing to replace the carpeting. These funds were held in escrow rather than just handed to me in the form of a check. If I failed to have the carpeting replaced in a given time (I think it was 90 days) the funds went back to the seller. The catch was the escrow agreement wanted me to have an inspection to validate the carpet was replaced. I argued that I was able to provide original receipts of the purchase and installation and wasn't willing to pay another $300 for an inspector to walk through my house and say "yup, carpet looks new". It was just one more headache I didn't need, but was able to get my money in the end.

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When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and swing.