In Minnesota every single family residence (house, townhouse, or condo) that is listed is required to have either a seller's disclosure or an agreement between the seller and buyer that the disclosure will be waived. The seller's disclosure, or its alternate, are supposed to be displayed for all potential buyers to review during a showing. Questions on the disclosure range from what form of title evidence the seller has (abstract or torrens certificate) to whether the mechanicals in the house are functioning.
The listing agent cannot fill out 9 page the seller's disclosure form. Only the seller can answer the disclosure questions. My rule of thumb for St. Paul sellers is to disclose everything they know about the property. If an issue is disclosed, a buyer cannot sue for remedy after the closing.
Minnesota law allows for some exceptions to my "tell all" rule! The exceptions include no duty to disclose that the home was occupied by someone suspected of having HIV or AIDS; that the home was the site of a suicide, accidental death, natural death or perceived paranormal activity (ghosts!); that the home is located in a neighborhood with adult family homes, community based residential facilities or nursing homes; or any information about a predatory offender in the neighborhood IF the prospective buyer is given info about how to find predatory offender information (which is in the purchase agreement).
The irony behind these exceptions is that many buyers want to know about a death in a home, ghosts, residential facilities, and definitely predatory offender info. Because the sellers' disclosure does not require disclosure of such facts, more responsibility is placed on the buyer to do their "due diligence" in researching this info.
Comments