Full Disclosure
Definition of "Full disclosure"
In a broader sense, Full Disclosure means presenting all information (significant or not, classified or not) related to a certain matter.
In Real Estate, the term “Full Disclosure” can be used in different situations… it can be used as a requirement for a lender to disclose to borrowers the effective cost of a loan; its terms, conditions and all the fine print. But also, and more commonly, to refer to a requirement a real estate broker – or a home seller going the For Sale By Owner (FSBO) route – has of providing all known information about the condition of a property - its structural flaws, its average energy consumption, its blueprint etc. – to the home buyer. If after the sale the home buyer discovers information discrepancy both the real estate broker and the former homeowner are eligible to get sued for not giving the full disclosure.
That’s why the services of a home inspector are so important. It becomes his/her responsibility to disclose all the problems of the house. Any liability becomes his/hers.
There are disclosure forms so no one says “but how would I know I had to look for that?”. There are federal disclosure requirements but also, because every locality has its own characteristics, state disclosure requirements.
Real Estate Tips:
Full disclosure? Find a real estate agent because without them everything becomes much more difficult!
Popular Real Estate Terms
The meaning of a guarantee covers a legal and financially-binding agreement signed between three parties involved in real estate or financial transactions. In this document, typically ...
Person or business that obtains mortgages for others by finding suitable lenders. The mortgage broker sometimes deals with collections and disbursements. Typically the mortgage broker ...
Unexpected increase in the price of property not due to any effort on the owner's part. An example is when the appraised value of a house increases because of a population increase in the ...
Same as term closing: legal process of transferring a piece of real estate to a buyer. Typically it occurs in the office of the lender, attorney, or an escrow company. ...
If escrow is the legal “moment” where assets are held by a third party (an escrow agent) hired by both the buyer and the seller of goods like real estate and insurance until the ...
Time it takes to drive to an outlying area form a major urban area. The driving time radius can radically affect real estate values in outlying areas of major metropolitan regions. Unless ...
Also called trust deed. A document that conveys title to a neutral third party during the period in which the mortgage loan is outstanding as collateral for a debt. ...
The direction in which a community is growing. Directional growth is measured over time, and its path strongly influences current and future market values of those properties clearly in ...
An adversary hearing allows both parties to an issue to present their views. A public procedure performed by an administrative or legislative body to investigate certain matters and ...
Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.