Hiding one thing from a buyer can derail your entire sale, and might even land you in legal trouble. Here’s what to disclose to protect your sale.

Selling a home involves many moving parts. Pricing, marketing, negotiations, and inspections. But there is one area that consistently creates the most legal trouble for sellers: disclosures.

In fact, failure to disclose is the number one reason sellers end up in lawsuits.

Before we discuss what should be disclosed, it’s important to understand the seriousness of the issue.

I recently saw a situation involving another real estate professional where a seller failed to disclose certain information about the property. What followed was a five-year legal process. Five years of stress. Five years of attorney fees. All because something was not properly disclosed at the time of sale.

Most of the clients we work with are young families preparing for their next chapter or retirees planning a smooth move. The last thing they want after closing is to deal with a lawsuit while relocating across the country or settling into a retirement community.

If you want your sale to be smooth and uneventful, your focus needs to be on proper disclosure.

What should you disclose? The general advice I give every client is simple: when in doubt, disclose.

If you have a question about whether something should be disclosed, it probably should be. If an issue comes to mind, that alone is a strong indicator that it belongs on the form. While not every situation is legally required to be disclosed, transparency is almost always the safest approach.

Deaths in the property. Certain states require disclosure if someone passed away in the property within a specific time frame, such as the past five years.

"When in doubt, disclose. It’s the simplest way to protect yourself when selling your home."

Material defects and history of repairs or renovations. This may include known defects, prior repairs, water intrusion, foundation issues, roof problems, pest history, or any material fact that could impact the value or desirability of the home.

The key is honesty and completeness.

Fill out disclosure forms honestly and completely. Disclosure paperwork can feel overwhelming. It is often one of the least enjoyable parts of the selling process. There are multiple forms, detailed questions, and sometimes uncertainty about how much to include. However, this is not the area to rush or minimize information.

Consider a pre-listing inspection. If you want to go a step further and reduce risk even more, consider obtaining pre-listing inspections.

• A general home inspection
• A pest inspection
• A roof inspection

If your property includes additional features such as a pool, solar panels, a well, or a septic system, those components should also be inspected.

These inspections provide professional documentation that supports your disclosures. Instead of simply stating what you believe to be true about the property, you can provide third-party reports that outline its current condition.

That level of transparency shows buyers that you are acting in good faith and being as upfront and ethical as possible. It also significantly reduces the likelihood of disputes after closing.

Again, the guiding principle remains the same: When in doubt, disclose.

In many cases, it is better to over-disclose than to risk leaving something out that could later become the basis for legal action.

If you are preparing to sell your home and have questions about disclosures, it is worth having a conversation before completing the paperwork. Taking the time to handle this step correctly can protect you from years of unnecessary stress and expense.

A smooth sale begins with transparency. You can reach out through our contact form, give us a call at (855) 935-6673, or email us at [email protected]. I’m happy to walk you through the process and answer your questions before you list.