When buying or selling property you will find that there are a lot of disclosures, so many I will only cover some of them here. Mostly it involves the seller disclosing material facts to the buyer. What are material facts? Anything about the property that could affect the buyer's decision to purchase the property. Let's take a look at some of the common disclosures.
Physical disclosures about the property - such as construction - are common. This means that if the seller knows that the roof leaks, or that a seal is broken in one of the dual-paned windows, or the hot water heater needs to be replaced, this information must be passed on to the buyer. Failure to do so could result in a lawsuit later when the buyer discovers the leak and sues the seller over the non-disclosure. There is also a disclosure about lead-based paint - the seller needs to disclose whether or not there is lead-based paint in the home - or if they do not know, they must state that.
There are neighborhood disclosures as well. Is the property near a golf course? That must be disclosed in case of errant golf balls. Near a former military site? Disclose that. Noisy neighbor, maybe someone who runs a loud business from home (think sawmill or other some such)? Disclose that. Even noisy neighbors if law enforcement has been called about the noise should be disclosed. If you live near an airport (think Little River or Boonville) you need to disclose that.
Some disclosures are more esoteric - Meghan's Law disclosures, for instance. Or how far the property is from emergency response services. Even cost of wireless internet connections. Fortunately, these types of disclosures are covered by a California Association of REALTOR'S(R) form, the Statewide Buyer and Seller Advisory. This is a ten page form that covers 43 different disclosures.
What are the responsibilities of the various parties to a real estate purchase pursuant to disclosures? Per the CAR form referenced above, the buyer is strongly advised to conduct investigations of the property both personally and via professionals. The seller must disclose material facts and make the property available to the buyer for inspections. The broker (real estate agent) is responsible for making a visual inspection of accessible areas of the property and disclosing material facts obtained in that inspection; however, be aware that brokers do not have expertise in all areas and matters affecting the property and should not be relied upon to provide all the information a professional can.
What if you don't know anything about the property you are selling? For instance, your aunt passes away and leaves you her house and you decide you would rather sell it than keep it. In your disclosures you can simply state that you don't know anything about the various areas of disclosure. Just remember to disclose what you know - or if you don't know anything to disclose!
As always, if you have questions about this or anything related to real estate, give me a call or an email - 707-937-9216 or anne@annefashauer.com.