A complete disclosure is the most important thing a seller can do to protect themselves from being sued in the future.

The rule I go by for the disclosure is if you must think about whether an issue is important enough to disclose, then you should disclose it.

The rule our attorney gives us is you won’t get sued for something you disclosed, it is only when you don’t disclose something that you could get sued.

Almost all lawsuits from unhappy buyers have to do with something that was not disclosed.

There is a comprehensive disclosure statement with many questions that sellers will answer and provide to the buyers, normally within 10 days after acceptance.

If a new disclosure comes up, or one that makes a previous disclosure statement not accurate, and this disclosure substantially affects the value of the property, then the seller needs to provide an Amended Disclosure Statement to the buyer. Substantially is a keyword as minor issues that can easily be fixed do not create the need for an Amended Disclosure Statement.

If the buyer is not satisfied with the disclosure statement or amended disclosure statement, they have up to the number of days in I-3 to cancel the escrow and get their deposits back.

The “As Is” Conditional Addendum does not change the seller’s responsibility to disclose everything.

So sellers make sure you disclose everything. This is the most important thing you can do to make sure you are not sued after the sale closes.

View Complete Hawaii Real Property Disclosure Statement

Additional Search Terms – I1, I2, I-1, I-2