Home : Blogs : Suzi Gravenstuk, REALTOR®, Broker : THE MS Gulf Coast Welcomes You!

Death in the House is a Non Material Fact in Mississippi

Mississippi Buyers and Sellers:

For those of you who wonder about Mississippi Death Disclosure regarding real estate law, here it is...

Real Estate Transfer Disclosure for the State of Mississippi. Click here!

Keep in mind there are exceptions that may apply.

Look to the menu on the left side. Click on License Law. Check out pages 26 through 27 (89-1-527).

Note that disclosure is both not required AND required. (Also note that I am not an attorney and do not practice law!). This section specifies that disclosure of deaths that do not effect material value are not required unless a Buyer Agent, or Buyer asks.

So, if you are a Buyer and this is an important history of the home you plan to buy--Ask.

If you are a seller I recommend letting potential buyers know before viewing your home (if you are selling FSBO) and letting your listing agent know and have the authority to gently give that history of your home.

This is my opinion. Some buyer prospects will not have issue with this fact. For the ones who do have issue, its better to know up front than to possibly begin a transaction that fails once this history is discovered.

Incidentally, I could find nothing in the Gulf Coast MLS rules and regs that require such disclosure.

Personally, I prefer the high road, and disclose, disclose. Since Agents are obligated to Obey all legal instructions of their clients, I will only List those that agree to disclose.

Thanks to Jay Badru and his commentors for motivating me to RE-REverify Mississippi Law and MLS Rules/Regs regarding this issue.

Other opinions:

Doing Business The Law &YouPut stigmas in their place, BY BARBARA NICHOLS

What does REsearch and REal Estate have in common? :-)

Posted by Suzi Gravenstuk, REALTOR®, Broker on 09/04/2008 01:06 AM

Comments (3)

mississippi, mississippi gulf coast, gulf coast mls, stigmatized properties, death history of property, death disclosure

Originally posted at: THE MS Gulf Coast Welcomes You!: Death in the House is a Non Material Fact in Mississippi

This post has been included in Mississippi Information
Post is included in group: LATE NIGHT - EARLY MORNING AT ACTIVERAIN
Post is included in group: Realtors®

3 Comments on Death in the House is a Non Material Fact in Mississippi

SEP

2008

it is a non-material fact in Oregon too.... so is violent crime

There's a distinction between the type of death your addressing here and something that might approach stigmatizing the property, Suzi.

The Tennessee Real Estate Commission says:

66-5-207. Liability for nondisclosure of communicable diseases or criminal acts on property. -Notwithstanding any of the provisions of this

(1) An act or occurrence which had no effect on the physical structure of the real property, its physical environment or the improvements located thereon; or
part, or any other statute or regulation, no cause of action shall arise against an owner or a real estate licensee for failure to disclose that an occupant of the subject real property, whether or not such real property is subject to this part, was afflicted with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or other disease which has been determined by medical evidence to be highly unlikely to be transmitted through the occupancy of a dwelling place, or that the real property was the site of:

(2) A homicide, felony or suicide. [Acts 1994, ch. 828, § 7.]

It would be interesting to hear how the ruling compares to the fifty states, and when and if a property is considered stigmatized.

Fine post, Suzi. Hope your having a great week.

Thesa, hello and thank you for letting us know how it works in your state. It is an interesting issue.

David, Thank you as well. The reason I gave the source and location of information was so that readers could interpret the information for themselves. Plus, I didn't want to run the risk of copy/paste although our commission says that all information may be duplicated, just not changed. Specifically, this is Mississippi's position:

89-1-527. Nonmaterial facts or suspicions; defined; failure to disclose; effect
(1) The fact or suspicion that real property is or was:
(a) The site of a natural death, suicide, homicide or felony crime

(except for illegal drug activity that affects the physical

condition of the property, its physical environment or the improvements located thereon);
(b) The site of an act or occurrence that had no effect on the physical
condition of the property, its physical environment or the
improvements located thereon;
(c) Owned or occupied by a person affected or exposed to any disease not
known to be transmitted through common occupancy of real estate
including, but not limited to, the human immunodeficiency virus
(HIV) and the acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS);
does not constitute a material fact that must be disclosed in a real estate
transaction. A failure to disclose such nonmaterial facts or suspicions shall
not give rise to a criminal, civil or administrative action against the owner of
such real property, a licensed real estate broker or any affiliated licensee of
the broker.
(2) A failure to disclose in any real estate transaction any information that
is provided or maintained, or is required to be provided or maintained, in
accordance with Section 45-33-21 through Section 45-33-57, shall not give rise to
a cause of action against an owner of real property, a licensed real estate
broker or any affiliated licensee of the broker. Likewise, no cause of action
shall arise against any licensed real estate broker or affiliated licensee of the
broker for revealing information to a seller or buyer of real estate in
accordance with Section 45-33-21 through Section 45-33-57. Any factors related
to this paragraph, if known to a property owner or licensee shall be disclosed if
requested by a consumer.
(3) Failure to disclose any of the facts or suspicions of facts described in
subsections (1) and (2) shall not be grounds for the termination or rescission of
any transaction in which real property has been or will be transferred or leased.
This provision does not preclude an action against an owner of real estate who
makes intentional or fraudulent misrepresentations in response to a direct
inquiry from a purchaser or prospective purchaser regarding facts or suspicions
that are not material to the physical condition of the property including, but
not limited to, those factors listed in subsections (1) and (2).

Death on the property and manner of death matters to some people. Again, if one is buying in Mississippi and this is an issue of importance, you need to know to Ask and/or to let your agent know if this is important.

Leave a response…

Name:

Email:
(optional)

Comment:

What does the graphic say?