Florida Seller Disclosure

The general duty: known, material and not obvious

Florida does not have one statewide mandatory disclosure form for resale homes. The duty comes from case law. Johnson v. Davis held that a seller of a home who knows of facts materially affecting its value, which are not readily observable and not known to the buyer, must disclose them. A leaking roof the seller patched before listing is the classic example.

Three limits matter in practice:

• Knowledge. The duty covers what the seller actually knows. A seller who never inspected the attic may honestly know nothing.
• Readily observable. Defects a buyer could see on an ordinary walk-through, such as a cracked tile floor, generally fall outside the duty.
• Residential only. Commercial property is treated differently.

Buying under the AS IS contract does not cancel this duty. The AS IS form means the seller does not have to repair, and the buyer can cancel during the inspection period. It does not let a seller hide a known latent defect.

The flood disclosure: what it requires since 2024 and 2025

Searches for a Florida flood disclosure are about section 689.302 of the Florida Statutes, created in 2024. It requires the seller of residential real property to give the buyer a flood disclosure, using wording set by the statute, at or before the time the contract is signed.

The original version asked whether the seller had filed a flood insurance claim and whether the seller had received federal assistance, such as FEMA aid, for flood damage. Changes effective October 1, 2025 widened it:

• The seller must disclose any flooding known to have damaged the property during the seller's ownership, even if no insurance claim was filed.
• Assistance received to repair flood damage must be disclosed whatever the source, not only federal assistance.

The form also reminds buyers that standard homeowners policies do not cover flood. Florida Realtors offers a flood disclosure form that matches the statute. The seller completes it; agents can point to the form but cannot fill in the answers.

Other disclosures required in a Florida sale

Several other notices appear in most Florida contracts or closings:

• Radon. Florida law requires a radon gas notice in contracts for the sale of buildings.
• Lead-based paint. Federal law requires a disclosure and a pamphlet for homes built before 1978, plus a chance for the buyer to test.
• Property tax. A statutory notice tells the buyer not to rely on the seller's current tax bill, because the assessment resets after a sale and exemptions such as homestead do not transfer.
• HOA disclosure summary. For homes in an HOA under Chapter 720, the buyer must receive a summary of dues and obligations. Without it before signing, the buyer has a short window to cancel.
• Condo documents. On a resale condo, the buyer gets the association's governing documents, budget and related records, and has 7 days after delivery, not counting weekends or legal holidays, to cancel.
• CDD notice. Contracts for property in a Community Development District must include a notice that the district levies assessments.

Seller's property disclosure forms

Even without a mandatory state form, most listing agents give sellers the Florida Realtors seller's property disclosure, a checklist covering the roof, plumbing, electrical, pool, sinkholes, flooding, permits, termites, HOA matters and more. Many sellers fill it out because a written record of what they disclosed protects them later.

Read it as a list of leads. When a seller checks yes for prior roof leaks, sinkhole activity, termite treatment or work done without permits, ask for the invoices, permits, insurance claim records and any treatment contract. When a seller checks don't know on items they would reasonably know, ask why.

A seller can also authorize a CLUE report, the insurance industry's claims history for the address. It shows past property claims, including water and wind, and is useful when the flood disclosure says no but the neighborhood flooded in a recent storm.

Condo sellers have extra items worth asking about, even when the form does not list them: whether the building has completed its milestone inspection and Structural Integrity Reserve Study, whether any special assessment has been discussed but not yet voted, and whether the unit has had water intrusion from a neighbor or the roof. The association documents answer some of this, but the seller often knows first, especially about assessments still in the board's discussion stage.

What the buyer still has to verify

Disclosures tell you what the seller knows. These checks cover what the seller may not know or may not have mentioned:

• Home inspection within the inspection period, plus a wind mitigation inspection and, for older homes, a 4-point inspection.
• FEMA flood zone and elevation for the address, and a flood insurance quote. Lenders require flood coverage in high-risk A and V zones.
• Permit search with the city or county for open or expired permits and unpermitted additions.
• Insurance quotes before the inspection period ends, since roof age and claims history drive both price and availability.
• Sinkhole history where relevant. Florida insurers must cover catastrophic ground cover collapse, while broader sinkhole coverage is optional.
• Association records: budget, reserves, minutes and the estoppel certificate.

Statewide, values are up 18.6% over five years on Zillow's index. A lot of homes changed hands during that run, and some were renovated quickly. Permit records and claims history are the fastest way to see what was really done.

If a defect appears after closing

If you discover a serious defect after closing and believe the seller knew about it, gather evidence first: photos, contractor reports, permit records, insurance claims and any communications that show the seller's knowledge. Florida law has time limits for claims, so talk to a Florida real estate attorney promptly. Proving what a seller knew is often the hard part, which is why a thorough inspection before closing is worth far more than a lawsuit afterward.

This isn't legal advice. Disclosure law is fact-specific, and the exact wording of your contract matters. When I review a property for a buyer, I read the seller's disclosure next to the inspection report and the permit history, and flag anything that does not line up before the inspection period ends.