We have property condition disclosure forms in MD and VA too, but VA is a caveat emptor state and few sellers complete the form.  They use the disclaimer. 

MD has disclosure or disclaimer and the disclaimer includes a statement about latent material defects.

However, the seller has to complete the form.  Agents take a terrific risk if they do it.  The owner occupant should fill the form out.

I'm constantly amazed at the sellers who think that they don't have to disclose known defects and can just put the "as is" clause in the listing. 

Here in L.A., the seller discloses and both of the agents disclose.  If a seller doesn't put something down that I know about, I DO!  We have so many disclosure forms.  It is important to stress to the seller that it is to their benefit to disclose.  If it is a concern, it leads to an inspection, then possibly nothing or possibly further negotiation.  With all the inspections necessary in my area, it is definitely to the seller's benefit to be up front and not waste anyone's time -- including theirs.  Great explanation, Lisa!

I've had sellers in Texas state that they don't have to provide disclosures for various reasons. We always write it into the contract that within 3 days, buyer requires seller disclosures.  That's how you get around seller mentality regardless of loopholes in the laws. 

Sellers need to understand that when they aren't honest with the disclosure, it will certainly be obvious upon inspection as well.  I've seen some pretty clean disclosures lately for homes that were built in the 40's!  They must be kidding, right? 

Lenn, so if I'm getting this right, in VA there is no requirement to provide a disclosure?

Elaine, I know that CA has it's own set of issues regarding disclosures and that the ones we have in Louisiana pale by comparison - at least we only have 2, not the multitude that you do!!

Amanda, what are the loopholes in TX law?

If you own it, but never occupied it, you don't have to complete a seller's disclosure notice.  With all these investors running around, they aren't required to disclose even if they had the property inspected.  Same goes for Estates.  It's a crock because usually the investors have work done prior to listing and they know what, if anything, is wrong.

Doesn't matter for my buyers.  I ask if they would like the contract to require disclosure and my buyers always insist upon it. 

Amanda, do the TX disclosures have a place for "Not Known"?  That's my biggest peeve, when all of the questions are answered that way.

Lisa, we have a six page Sellers Property Disclosure Statement (SPDS) that must be presented to the buyer within five days after an agreed-upon contract. There is a ten-day window after date of contract acceptance to have home inspection, etc. ;-)

Good post Lisa. I think this info is good for your potential clients in your area.

Lisa, Sounds like there are loopholes in other states. I obviously believe in disclosure laws for everything that is known about a residence.

Teri, I try to get the disclosures signed at the same time that I write/receive an offer - we have a place to post them online on the MLS here, so there is no reason a buyer's agent can't have them up front.

Carole, I KNOW that you understand the importance of disclosures!  You are the perfect example of why people need to disclose, disclose, disclose!

Good post Lisa,

It is in the seller's best interest to take their time and fill out the disclosure truthfully.

Lisa,

Great post on disclosure. This is a really important topic.  Your forms in Louisianna look very thorough from the snapshot you have. 

Amy, thanks - being honest is the only way the seller is going to make the inspections and negotiations go smoothly. 

Rebecca, I think they are pretty thorough, although we certainly have some common questions from buyers that are not addressed in them and they are no where near as complex as some I've seen from other states!

Lisa:  When sellers question completing a disclosure form, I tell them that long, long ago when a buyer bought a home... it was totally "buyer beware."  Then I share that it has now swung totally in the other direction, and it is now "Seller Beware."  I simply tell them that... if after the new buyer moves in, they discover anything wrong with the home, and it can be shown that the seller either was aware, or should have been aware of it... and did not disclose it... they... the sellers... will be in for a very, very bad time.  After that... they almost always fill out the disclosure very completely.  Thanks for sharing.

Karen, you have a great and simple way of explaining it - I may borrow that!

Lisa-I sell mostly land out here by Palm Springs, and at the Colorado River.....until last year CA agents were telling me that I had to have my clients do a TDS ..Transfer Disclosure Statement that is pages long and only one small paragraph has to do with land.  Some of the Disclosures have nothing to do with land, and finally the State came up with a separate one.  Also I tell my clients, some of whom bought their desert property in the 50's and haven't seen it in 30 years to just write across the form "Never lived on land" and check the unknown box if they do not know.  I have a lot of unknowns :)

Also we have 17 days built right in our contracts for cancellation for any reason.....and a default of 7 days to get all the disclosures.

You have a couple thing on your form that I am interested in....and go figure with CA having a truckload of statutory forms that they would miss a few things LOL :)  They come out with updates and/or new forms twice a year, and some of the agents don't keep up with them, and use old forms.  It's a challenge for sure :)

Kathy, 17 days?  Wow - that's a long time!  We are required to make disclosures available before the contract is written, but if the purchasers write without them, they have 72 hours to cancel after receipt.  They can also walk with no penalty for any reason if they are not happy with the inspections.  I don't write a contract without the disclosures - you never know what is on them that might change the terms of the offer!

Lisa-You have made a very good example on why we need to be very careful when we are saying what we would or wouldn't do when commenting on someones Post.  Your disclosures and contracts are very different than ours.......:)  Anyway, yes all clients have a default of 17 days AFTER the contract is accepted to do all their due dillengence.  Now let's say a disclosure comes in, or the Home Inspection, that has something on it they don't like.....they have different options at that point, including cancelling.  We write all the time without the disclosures......:)

If I had a seller I might like the 72 hours, but if I had a buyer I would want more time......dealing with the County and Zoning, or Planning, or the Water District can be a time consuming process.  I sat for one full day at the Planning Department, then had to go to the Flood Department.....I got an excellent education though, and I can say 72 hours wouldn't work out very well for my clients :)

Do you guys have to do perk tests?

Kathy, the 72 hours is a blanket time to cancel if the disclosures are not provided at the time the offer is written.  The inspection period (whatever time frame is agreed upon between the buyer and seller) starts the day after contract acceptance.  That's when the buyer can do all of their due diligence including any and all inspections they want to perform and can cancel based on any of the inspection results.  Since I really only sell residential, I haven't had any zoning issues to deal with - thank goodness!! - and I have no idea what a perk test is.  Can you explain that to me?

p.s.  You make a very good point about the differences from state to state and even region to region in  customary disclosures, time frames and "how things are done".  That's why I think this type of post is valuable to the consumer - if they are coming from another area, they can discover ahead of time what is customary in the New Orleans area!

Lisa- Oh, so the 72 hours is like a cooling off period, and you can just cancel if you wish, right?  Then you have a contracted time frame for the other disclosures....OK, I got it now :)

Lucky you not to deal with zoning, flood areas (that seems funny since you live in New Orleans).....but seriously if land is in a flood zone then some zones they can still build, but the house has to be built higher up.....all depends on which zone they're in. And a Perc Test....that's a test where they drill or dig into the ground, then pour liquid in the holes and see how fast it goes into the ground.  That's the simple way to say it....it's an important test for the septic systems leech field, and if a property "doesn't perc" then you have a big problem :)

I had a client from Michigan, and he kept insisting we get a perc test on a particular property.  I explained to him over and over the seller wouldn't pay for one, and that the whole area had a" blanket perc"...but he had such bad experiences in Michigan that it was very, very difficult to get him to trust me.  Again, different areas, different experiences.......

Lisa I think this is a very good Blog article you wrote........when people are buying land there can be many issues, and it's not enough that their Aunt Mary is a REALTOR (R)  if Aunt Mary doesn't live in the area :) :)

Kathy, the 72 hours comes into play ONLY if the purchaser did not receive the disclosures prior to writing an offer.  Usually, the disclosures are signed and delivered along with the offer.  Once the negotiations are complete, the inspection period begins the next day.

Interesting information on perc tests - I know if I ever move to another state, I need an AR buddy to make sure I don't miss any of the nuances of purchasing a home in their area!  We are all so different!

Lisa- Amen to that one.....have a good day, and thanks for the great info on Real Estate Disclosures in New Orleans...