What information must sellers disclose to buyers?

During your house hunting quest, chances are you will only see a given house at its best; perfectly organised, expertly staged, and clean. This gives you a perfect picture that lures you into buying the house; however, you might be missing a lot; recurrent water problems, rat and termite infestations, past flooding cases, etc. These are the things that eventually cost you a lot.

What information must sellers disclose to buyers?

This is the point where a seller’s disclosure chips in. It is usually designed, giving you as a buyer insights into the defects you are likely to experience, with your new house – including the past, as well as the present. This may help you to make a more informed decision on whether to buy the house and not forgetting, saving you high costs you would have included in repair costs.

The seller's disclosure form protects the buyer, as well as the seller. How? As a buyer, you need to have all the detailed information, of any upgrades, repairs, and renovations required, even before buying the house. As for the seller, before closing the deal, the buyer is required to sign off, proving that he/she is conversant with any pre-existing problem, thus protecting the seller from any irregular legal action you may opt to take afterwards.

Details included in the seller’s disclosure form

Generally, a seller is required to include all the house defects – past or current, or any major constructions done either on the foundation, roof, the structure or the house systems (plumbing, electrical, heating, septic, etc.)

Below are examples of some of the issues to be disclosed by the seller;

Leakage on the roof, doors and windows 
Knowledge of a neighboring construction or development project
DIY renovations or even construction done short of the city permit
Past occurrences of flooding
Any utility issues
Local environmental risks
The existence of radon, lead paint, radon, mold, or asbestos
Hitches with the plumbing or electrical systems
Soil contamination
Wildlife or infestations
Property line clashes
Bankruptcy proceedings
Recent crime or death on the property
Neighborhood noise or nuisances
Malfunction of appliances
Present property liens
Cracks in the houses’ foundation, etc.

Anything that poses as a threat to either your health or even in devaluing your property should be included in the seller’s disclosure form. Also, note that the seller might not be fully aware of all the underlying issues. While even in some cases, to keep the house sales on track, the seller might fail to highlight all the problems.

Being a legal document, ensure you request for a disclosure form, either from your housing agents or even directly from the house seller. Review it carefully before signing into any contract. This might save you big-time!

 

 

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Meet Abigail

  Hello, my name is Abigail, and I am the Grey in Grey & Co. I started working here in 2002 as a Junior Negotiator and have worked my way up the ranks since then. I took over running the company in 2014 and have been enjoying the roller coaster that is leadership ever since.   During my 20 plus years at Grey & Co I have dealt with the sale of over £100,000,000 worth of property and overseen the management of assets worth £250,000,000 for clients around the world.   I also had the pleasure of working with my father, the founder of Grey & Co, for 15 years before he sadly passed away and from him, I learnt the work hard ethic and our values today are still the ones that he founded the company on all those years ago.   Be Remarkable, Be Passionate, Be Humble and Be Better.   As a community centric boutique family agency, you couldn’t find a better partner to take with you on your property journey.

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