Florida Home Sellers Must Disclose Flood History Under New Law

“For the first time, Florida home sellers will have to disclose certain aspects of a property’s flood history, under legislation Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law this week,” reports Amy Green for Inside Climate News. Prior to the new law, Florida was one of 18 states that did not require flood disclosure as part of a home transaction, despite being at significant and increasing risk of sea level rise and major hurricanes and tropical storms, including Hurricane Ian in 2022, which was the costliest storm in state history and the third-costliest nationally. 

“The measure requires home sellers to provide a flood disclosure form ‘at or before the time the sales contract is executed.’ The document must include whether the seller ever has filed an insurance claim or received federal assistance because of flood damage on the property,” writes Green. It’s a step forward for home buyer rights in the state, advocates say, but loopholes exist. For example, sellers aren’t required to disclose in cases when properties were flooded but no insurance claim was filed or federal assistance accepted. Sellers are also not required to disclose if the home is in a flood zone or if access roads to the property are prone to flooding.