What a New York Home Seller Must Disclose

For two decades, New York home sellers had an easy way around the state's property disclosure form: give the buyer a $500 credit at closing and skip it. Nearly everyone did. In 2024 that changed.

The disclosure statement is now required

Under the Property Condition Disclosure Act (Real Property Law article 14), the seller of a one- to four-family home must give the buyer a completed Property Condition Disclosure Statement before the buyer signs a binding contract of sale.

As of March 20, 2024, the option to pay a $500 credit in place of the statement was eliminated. Sellers must now complete and deliver the form. The statute was amended again effective July 1, 2025, so make sure the form you are given, or are asked to fill out, is the current one.

What the form asks

The statement is a list of questions about what the seller actually knows, including:

• the age of the structure and how long the seller has owned it
• environmental matters, such as fuel storage tanks, asbestos, lead, and radon
• structural matters: the roof, the foundation, water and rot damage, and fire damage
• mechanical systems: plumbing, heating, air conditioning, electrical, septic, and well water
• flooding: the 2024 amendments added questions about whether the property is in a designated flood hazard area, whether it has flooded, and whether there is flood insurance or there have been flood claims

The seller answers from actual knowledge. The form does not require the seller to hire an inspector or to investigate.

What it does not cover

• Condominium units and co-op apartments are not covered.
• Certain transfers are exempt, including transfers by an executor or administrator of an estate, transfers in connection with a foreclosure, and sales of newly built homes that have never been occupied.

What happens if a seller gets it wrong

A seller who willfully fails to comply with the statute is liable for the actual damages the buyer suffers as a result (Real Property Law § 465). A knowingly false answer on the form can also support a fraud claim.

That exposure is new in a practical sense. When sellers paid the $500 credit, there were no answers to be held to. Now there are.

Beyond the form: "buyer beware" still applies

Apart from the statute, New York still follows the old rule of caveat emptor. A seller dealing at arm's length generally has no duty to volunteer information about the property. But a seller may not:

• actively conceal a defect, for example by painting over water damage or hiding a crack so that the buyer's inspection is defeated, or
• affirmatively misrepresent the condition of the property.

Contracts usually say the buyer is taking the property "as is" and is relying on their own inspection. Those clauses can defeat a later claim about something a careful buyer could have found.

Advice for sellers

1. Complete the form carefully and truthfully. "Unknown" is a permitted answer where it is the true one.
2. Do not guess, and do not answer "no" to something you are unsure about.
3. If you learn something new before closing, tell your attorney. The form may need to be updated.
4. Keep records of repairs, permits, and insurance claims.

Advice for buyers

1. Read the disclosure statement before you sign, and ask about any answer that concerns you.
2. Do not treat it as a substitute for an inspection. It reports only what the seller knows.
3. Check the flood answers against the public flood maps and get an insurance quote before you commit.

If you are selling a home and have questions about the form, or bought one and found a problem the seller did not disclose, call the office. For more, see Real Estate.