What Do You Have to Disclose When Selling a House in Florida? (2026)

Short answer: in Florida you must disclose facts you actually know that materially affect the value of the home and that a buyer could not readily see for themselves. That duty comes from a landmark Florida Supreme Court decision and applies to essentially every residential sale -- including as-is sales. On top of it sit several specific requirements: a written flood disclosure, association disclosures for HOA and condo properties, and the federal lead-based-paint rules for homes built before 1978.

Here is what each requirement covers, what the as-is contract actually changes, and the honest rule of thumb I give every seller: when in doubt, disclose.

The general duty: known, material, not readily observable

Florida law requires sellers of residential property to disclose facts that (1) they actually know, (2) materially affect the value of the property, and (3) are not readily observable to the buyer. A cracked slab you patched and painted over: disclose. A past roof leak that was repaired: disclose the history. The oak tree the buyer can see from the street: they can observe that themselves.

The standard seller's disclosure form your agent provides is not itself required by statute -- it is the industry's organized way of meeting the legal duty and documenting that you met it. Filling it out carefully protects you: the sellers who end up in post-closing disputes are almost never the ones who disclosed too much.

The flood disclosure: now required in writing

Florida now requires sellers of residential property to give the buyer a specific written flood disclosure at or before the time the contract is signed. It covers whether you have filed flood insurance claims for damage to the property and whether you have received federal assistance for flood damage. This is separate from -- and in addition to -- the general duty above: if you know the street flooded in a past storm, that is a material fact.

Given how central flood zones and flood insurance are to buying decisions in Sarasota and Manatee counties, I treat the flood conversation as a selling tool, not a liability: a documented history of no claims, or a clear explanation of what happened and what was fixed, answers the question every buyer here is already asking.

HOA and condo disclosures

If the home is in a homeowners association, Florida requires the buyer to receive an HOA disclosure summary -- dues, assessments, and the fact that they are obligatory. If it is a condominium resale, the buyer receives the governing documents and financial information and has a short statutory window to cancel the contract after receiving them. Neither is optional, and both go smoother when the paperwork is ordered early rather than discovered late.

If your community has a CDD, the assessment appears on the property-tax bill and is disclosed in the sale. Buyers in this market increasingly ask about it directly -- having the real number ready (mine are published for communities across the region on my fee pages) turns a common deal-killer question into a non-event.

Lead-based paint: homes built before 1978

Federal law adds one more layer for older homes: if the house was built before 1978, you must provide the buyer with the EPA lead-based-paint disclosure and pamphlet and disclose any known lead-based paint hazards. This one is federal, uniform nationwide, and strictly a function of the home's age.

What an as-is contract does -- and does not -- change

The as-is version of the Florida contract is popular here, and sellers sometimes assume it ends the disclosure conversation. It does not. As-is means you are not obligated to make repairs -- the buyer takes the home in its present condition, usually with an inspection period and the right to cancel. Your duty to disclose known material defects survives completely intact.

Used honestly, as-is is a clean way to sell: you disclose what you know, price the home accordingly, and let the buyer inspect. Used to hide a known problem, it is a lawsuit with a closing date.

The rule of thumb

When in doubt, disclose. It is the legal standard, it is the ethical standard, and -- in my experience -- it is also the negotiating standard: a documented, explained, repaired issue costs you far less at the table than the same issue discovered by the buyer's inspector with no context. If you are getting ready to sell and want a second set of eyes on what needs to be in the paperwork, that review is part of every listing consult I do.