Some East Vancouver sellers worry that if they reveal certain information about the property that they are selling, buyers won’t be interested buy it. This sometimes happens, and the result is a property that stays unsold for a very long time in the East Van homes for sale market. However, there’s no way around it, because in Vancouver, homeowners listing a property for sale needs to complete a detailed residential Property Disclosure Statement (PDS).
All potential deal breakers must be lifted
Real estate disclosure laws dictate what a home seller needs to disclose. The PDS lists potential problems that could be deal breakers in the sale of the home including the use of asbestos in the insulation, illegal renovations, unregistered easements, and even non-tangible qualities that may elicit negative psychological or emotional responses on the part of a potential buyer, such as a death and other disturbing facts about the home’s history.
Here’s a short list of examples that you will need to disclose in the PDS:
- Leak in the basement
- Termite infestation
- Facts about the surrounding neighborhood
- That there was a death in the house, and the circumstances surrounding that death
- That your tap water is contaminated
- That the house is haunted
The PDS contains a number of questions that you will need to answer with a ‘yes,’ ‘no,’ ‘do not know,’ or does not apply. You will be held responsible for the accuracy of the information you supply. As a rule of thumb, if there’s any information that you feel you shouldn’t disclose, most likely, you should disclose it.
It’s all for your protection
The key is to put yourself in the buyer’s shoes and ask yourself if the information you’re suppressing is something that would affect your enjoyment of your new house. By completely listing any pertinent information about your property in your PDS, you’ll have proof that you disclosed everything, and protect yourself from potential lawsuits.
In general, buyers value a seller’s honesty because it allows them to make a well-informed decision about a huge financial undertaking. The important thing to remember that just because it’s scary to you doesn’t mean it’s scary to everyone. To aid you in your home selling journey, it can help to obtain the services of an established name in the East Van houses for sale market, such as Real East Van.
Sources:
(Shouldn’t the seller have told you about the ghost in your new house?, EdmontonJournal.com)
(HOUSTON, WE HAVEN A PROBLEM: THE NEED TO DISCLOSE DEFECTS, GetWhatYouWant.com)
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