After moving into a new house, the last thing a person wants is to discover that the neighbor plays loud music, or has sketchy visitors in the middle of the night, or drives a semi truck that they leave idling on the street. But was the home seller obligated to disclose the nuisance? After all, it’s not material to the house itself…or is it?
The short answer is yes, the seller should probably disclose the nuisance. Many local disclosure laws have a clause that asks if there are any known nuisances, such as noise in the neighborhood, that could affect quality of life in the property. The same goes for other issues, such as seasonal water problems. If it comes up over and over again, regardless of the interval, it should be noted in the disclosure.
It can be fuzzy territory, because noise that might be a nuisance to one person might not bother another person. The sellers might not have even noticed the comings and goings in the middle of the night, or cared about the idling truck. In such cases, where the sellers didn’t disclose because it wasn’t an issue for them, a judge or arbitrator would have be called on to decide the case.
Often the buyer will overlook such issues, or not care. Perhaps they play loud music too. In my opinion, home sellers should always disclose and allow the buyers to satisfy themselves about the issue. The rule in real estate is “When in doubt, disclose.” Let me know what other disclosure questions you have, either buying or selling. Email me here, or reply to this newsletter.