Seller Disclosure
The seller disclosure is a statement made in good faith regarding the condition of the home he/she is trying to sell. There is a seller disclosure form – called “Form 17” - that is required by most states in the USA and, in it, the home seller must make it known to the home buyer any known structural defects like plumbing and electrical problems, and any history of problems with flood, sinkholes or other prior relevant damages to the property and its land.
Although deliberate misrepresentation within this statement can result in liability charges, the seller disclosure is not a substitute for a home inspection, nor warrants anything.
The contents of a seller disclosure can vary from state-to-state - sometimes from county to county! - but a typical form 17 contains information about:
- Structural, electrical and plumbing status of the house
- Title of the home and any ownership problems
- Hazards like lead paint, toxic mold, asbestos, radon etc.
- Water sources, rights and contamination
- Flood danger and previous flood damages
Most of these forms have questions for the home seller to reply to or boxes to check with “don’t know”, so it’s normal that one detail or another slips away. Plus, a lot of times you will deal with a home seller that has no “in-person” knowledge of the home. Like an investor who bought the house to flip it, so he/she doesn’t know what it “feels” like living in there and their seller disclosure might misrepresent some details of it. That’s why, like we’ve said, a home inspector is still needed to avoid nasty surprises down the road.
Real Estate Tips:
The home inspector is a must, but a good real estate agent will go through everything within the seller disclosure and will be able to point out other non-structural red flags for you too. And the place for good real estate agents is right here! Feel free to contact the one you like the most and good luck!
Popular Real Estate Terms
Are you speculating what a spec house means? (sorry for the lousy pun) The textbook spec (or speculative) house definition is “one built on an experimental basis, without an order ...
As you’d expect, the rod has various meanings in everyday discourse. However, lesser-known is that surveyors use a rod as a land survey measurement for real estate. In a nutshell, a ...
The operating expenses definition is the sum of costs or expenses a company deals to operate as a business. The term operating expenses is used in any business field and is commonly ...
A lessee (tenant) subleases the apartment to a third party .The tenant is now sandwiched between the lessor and the sublessee. In other words, the tenant is acting as a lessee to the ...
Individual or entity who pays for the professional services of another person or business. ...
The practice of acquiring land for a future use. For example, a franchising company is projecting rapid nationwide expansion over the next five years. In order to prepare for the expansion, ...
A loan in which the entire charge is subtracted up front from the face value of a loan. The proceeds received are the face value of the loan less this deduction, which increases the ...
Term indicating a resemblance or analogous to a legal classification. For example, a quasi corporation, quasi contract, quasi possession, quasi offense. ...
land that is adjacent to water such as a stream. ...
Have a question or comment?
We're here to help.