Steven Keefe, Broker/Owner
Coldwell Banker Sky Ridge Realty 
www.mountainmoves.com
steve@mountainupdate.com
909.336.2131
Shortly after closing escrow on their new home, the buyer came home one afternoon to a note plastered on the front door of their new home informing them that it was too bad they had just bought a home that someone had committed suicide in. Mortified, the buyer called his broker and asked the question "Shouldn't Somebody Have Told Me that the Seller Died in the House?
Not all states require identical seller disclosure, so it is a good idea to inquire as to the specifics of state law where the property is located. In California, if a death occured within the past 3 years, it is considered a material fact and must be disclosed. I have been asked on several occasions by sellers whether or not they are required to disclose when outside the 3 year window. Although not required to by law, it is our policy to advise the seller to disclose anything they feel would be a material fact that a buyer may come back on them at a later date. Sellers need to use common sense, if it is a fact that they would want to know if they were buying the home, then they should probably disclose it.
Likewise an agent must use common sense with regard to disclosure outside the 3 year window. Sometimes the seller will not want to disclose the fact and will also insist that the agent (even though they know it is something the buyer would want to know) not disclose the information. The agent must disclose if it is deemed a material fact.
In this particular instance, the property was a bank owned (REO) property and the sellers agent had no knowledge regarding the the circumstances of death. All that was known was that a neighbor had approached a Realtor that was showing the property and said that someone had died in the property offering no specifics or timeframes. The listing agents investigation determined no factual evidence that anything had occured in the property. When the agent told the bank that they felt a duty to disclose the bank insisted that they not do that as there was no evidence that anything had occured.
Comments