Agents Disclose, Not Diagnose
"seldom can it happen that something is not a little disguised, or a little mistaken"
- Jane Austen
When taking a new listing, I feel it best to have the sellers complete all of the required disclosures upfront. It prepares them for the sale and readies them for their move forward.
In California, we have many disclosures as well as specific disclosures depending on county or city requirements. How do you explain to clients their duty to disclose? We have been advised by our legal counsel to tell clients "when in doubt, disclose", "disclose, disclose, disclose" and "what would you want to know about this home if YOU were the buyer?". Of course, there are more but you get the idea.
How do you handle your own inspection disclosure when you represent a buyer and/or seller? It is required that agents complete their own visual inspection of a property when it is sold in the state of California. This can be completed on the transfer disclosure or on an agent visual inspection disclosure depending on the type of transaction.
Remember real estate agents are not, albeit with some exceptions, contractors, geologists, attorneys. A Realtor should not identify that crater-like crack on the concrete drive as "cosmetic", "small" or "large" or "normal from settlement". It's a crack. Realtors should recommend the buyers find the answers through the professional in that particular field.
Agents Disclose, Not Diagnose
Michael Jacobs is a Realtor in the Pasadena/San Gabriel Valley as well as the northeast foothill communties within the city of Los Angeles and can be reached at 818.516.4393 cell or michaeljacobs@coldwellbanker.com.
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