When In Doubt Disclose

Most home sellers (other than the institutional type) must disclose facts and defects that materially affect their home’s value or desirability. The Transfer Disclosure Statement (T.D.S.) and Seller Property Questionnaire (S.P.Q.) assist the seller in meeting this requirement by providing a standardized format for the most basic information. Full disclosure can reduce or eliminate the possibility of later legal action.

I prefer to provide the buyer with the completed disclosures when the buyer writes an offer. We can disclose to the buyer the known defects of the home. The buyer can consider these items when determining their offered price. Ideally, these deficiencies should not be renegotiated after the buyer’s physical inspection.

What type of defects should the home seller disclose? Often, as part of “day-to-day” living in a home, certain items do not function properly and are overlooked, and we accept them. Some common problems:  Does the doorbell work? Is the clock on the oven operating properly? Do all windows and doors open and close correctly? Is there safety glass in the shower & sliding glass doors? How is the water pressure? Are any sprinklers broken? When in doubt, disclose.

During inspections on one of my recent home sales, the buyer discovered that a portion of a flat roof needed repair. My client (the seller) told me, “but it’s a flat roof, and every year I “hot-mop” it. Routine ongoing maintenance should also be disclosed. If you regularly have your home rootered, or have a company spray for ants, this should be disclosed.

Is it owned or rented if you have a water softener/filtration? Information about an alarm system should also be noted. When you have a pool, the existing pool equipment is included in the sale; if any of it is leased or belongs to others, this needs to be disclosed to the buyer. If you wish to remove these items and consider them personal property, they should be excluded at the time of your counteroffer to the buyer. In addition, these items should be noted on the Transfer Disclosure with the notation that they are excluded from the sale. When in doubt, disclose. The list goes on and on.

What about neighbors? When do you need to disclose that they are noisy, intrusive, or a pain in the neck? I am a real estate agent, not an attorney, and I cannot provide legal advice. But I think that if you complain to others about a neighbor or have called the police, it should be disclosed.

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When in doubt, disclose
Selling with a leaky roof