Cal. Civ. Code § 1102 et. seq. codified the required disclosures found in the Transfer Disclosure Statement (“TDS”) that is executed as part of residential real estate purchases. The TDS contains several specific disclosures regarding the property that must be made. The list of disclosures may not cover every component of the property or every material fact affecting the value or the desirability of the property. Thus, if there is a material fact affecting the value or desirability of the property not already covered by the TDS, the seller of real estate must still disclose what is not covered by the TDS. See Cal. Civ. Code § 1102.8 (“The specification of items for disclosure in this article does not limit or abridge any obligation for disclosure created by any other provision of law or which may exist in order to avoid fraud, misrepresentation, or deceit in the transfer transaction.”) Sellers are obligated under California law to disclose all material facts within their knowledge affecting the value or desirability of the property even if the material fact is not specifically covered by the form disclosures executed in typical residential real estate transactions.
If you have a real estate nondisclosure question, contact one of our Los Angeles Nondisclosure Attorneys today for a free consultation and case evaluation.