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Sources

Every source, on the table

No claim on this site is meant to stand without a source. Here's the federal context, the two headline case studies, and the primary citation for each of the 51 jurisdictions.

The federal context

Federal law (FEMA / National Flood Insurance Program) does NOT mandate seller flood disclosure in residential real-estate sales. The NFIP sets flood-insurance and floodplain-management standards, but disclosure of a property's flood risk or flood history to a buyer is governed by STATE law, which varies widely. Federal law can require flood INSURANCE (for a federally backed/regulated mortgage on a property in a FEMA Special Flood Hazard Area, under the Flood Disaster Protection Act), which surfaces flood-zone status at financing, but that is an insurance requirement, not a seller-disclosure requirement. Additionally, prior NFIP claim history on a specific property is generally NOT obtainable by a prospective buyer without the current owner's/claimant's consent due to the federal Privacy Act. Primary sources: https://www.fema.gov/flood-insurance/rules-legislation and the Congressional Research Service NFIP overview https://www.congress.gov/crs-product/IF10988 . FEMA itself published model/best-practice state flood-risk disclosure requirements (acknowledging the federal gap): https://www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/documents/fema_state-flood-risk-disclosure-best-practices_07142022.pdf

Case studies

Florida HB 1049 (effective 2024-10-01)

Florida HB 1049 (2024) created Fla. Stat. § 689.302, requiring sellers of residential real property to complete and deliver a written 'Flood Disclosure' form to the buyer at or before the time the sales contract is executed. The form must disclose (1) whether the seller has filed a claim with any insurance provider relating to flood damage to the property (including a National Flood Insurance Program / NFIP claim) and (2) whether the seller has ever received federal assistance for flood damage to the property (including FEMA assistance). The disclosure also includes a disclaimer that homeowners' insurance policies do not cover flood damage and that buyers are encouraged to discuss separate flood-insurance coverage with their insurance agent. The statute defines 'flooding' broadly (overflow of inland/tidal waters, rapid runoff accumulation, or sustained standing water from rainfall). A 2025 amendment (effective Oct. 1, 2025) expanded the disclosure to also cover flooding that damaged the property during the seller's ownership and broadened the assistance question. NOTE: § 689.302 as enacted contains no express statutory penalty/remedy mechanism; general contract and misrepresentation law applies.

Fla. Stat. § 689.302

New York's $500 opt-out (eliminated 2024)

New York amended its Property Condition Disclosure Act (Real Property Law Article 14) via 2023 N.Y. Laws ch. 484 (S5400 / A1967), signed Sept. 22, 2023 and effective ~March 20, 2024 (180 days after signing). The amendment did two key things: (1) it ADDED detailed flood-risk disclosure questions to the mandatory Property Condition Disclosure Statement — whether the property is in a FEMA 100-year or 500-year floodplain, whether federal law requires flood insurance, the property's flood-insurance history, prior federal flood-disaster assistance, and prior flood-damage claims; and (2) it ELIMINATED the long-standing '$500 opt-out' loophole. Before this law, RPL § 465 let a seller who did NOT deliver a disclosure statement simply give the buyer a $500 credit against the purchase price at closing — in practice the overwhelming majority of NY sellers paid the nominal $500 and skipped disclosure entirely, making the Act largely a dead letter. The amendment repealed that $500-credit option (former structure) and instead makes a seller who willfully fails to comply liable for the buyer's actual damages plus other available remedies. So the '$500' was the statutory price of opting OUT of disclosure — a trap that defeated the disclosure regime — and it no longer exists.

2023 N.Y. Laws ch. 484 (S5400)

Per-state sources

36 verified · 15 corroborated

  • AlabamaBuyer-beware
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Ala. Code § 6-5-102 (suppression of material fact); caveat emptor doctrine per Alabama case law (no statutory residential disclosure act)Primary source Supplementary
  • AlaskaFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Alaska Stat. § 34.70.010 et seq. (remedies at § 34.70.090; form established under § 34.70.050)Primary source Supplementary
  • ArizonaGeneral
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    No general statutory residential disclosure act; common-law duty to disclose (Hill v. Jones line of cases). Ariz. Rev. Stat. § 33-422 (FEMA-floodplain affidavit, limited to 5 or fewer unsubdivided parcels in unincorporated areas).Primary source Supplementary
  • ArkansasBuyer-beware
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
  • CaliforniaFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Cal. Civ. Code § 1103 et seq. (Natural Hazard Disclosure; 1103.2 form/flood items, 1103.13 remedy); 1102 et seq. (Transfer Disclosure Statement)Primary source Supplementary
  • ColoradoGeneral
    Corroborated (secondary)· verified June 16, 2026
  • ConnecticutFlood-specific
    Corroborated (secondary)· verified June 16, 2026
    Conn. Gen. Stat. §§ 20-327b to 20-327e (report requirement and flood-hazard content); § 20-327c ($500 credit / civil action for nondisclosure)Primary source Supplementary
  • DelawareFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Del. Code Ann. tit. 6, §§ 2570-2578 (Buyer Property Protection Act); § 2572 (disclosure of material defects); § 2578 (property condition report form)Primary source
  • Corroborated (secondary)· verified June 16, 2026
    D.C. Code §§ 42-1302, 42-1304 (Residential Real Property Seller Disclosures, ch. 13)Primary source Supplementary
  • FloridaFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Fla. Stat. § 689.302 (created by HB 1049, ch. 2024-215, effective Oct. 1, 2024)Primary source Supplementary
  • GeorgiaBuyer-beware
    Corroborated (secondary)· verified June 16, 2026
    O.C.G.A. § 10-6A-5 (preserves seller's obligation under applicable law to disclose known adverse material facts about the physical condition of property); duty otherwise grounded in Georgia common law. No statute mandating a seller disclosure form.Primary source Supplementary
  • HawaiiFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Haw. Rev. Stat. ch. 508D (esp. 508D-15 flood hazard area notification; 508D-16 remedies)Primary source Supplementary
  • IdahoGeneral
    Corroborated (secondary)· verified June 16, 2026
    Idaho Code § 55-2501 et seq. (Property Condition Disclosure Act); § 55-2508 (disclosure form); § 55-2515 (rescission); § 55-2517 (failure to comply/actual damages)Primary source Supplementary
  • IllinoisFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    765 ILCS 77 (Residential Real Property Disclosure Act); 765 ILCS 77/35 (disclosure report, flood items 2 and 3); 765 ILCS 77/55 (remedy)Primary source Supplementary
  • IndianaFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Ind. Code § 32-21-5 (Residential Real Estate Sales Disclosure; form contents 32-21-5-7; presentation 32-21-5-10; owner liability 32-21-5-11)Primary source Supplementary
  • IowaFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Iowa Code ch. 558A (esp. 558A.4 required information; 558A.6 liability/remedy); disclosure form prescribed by Iowa Admin. Code r. 193E-14.1Primary source Supplementary
  • KansasNone
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
  • KentuckyFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    KRS 324.360 (form for seller's disclosure of conditions); form historically prescribed by 201 KAR 11:350 (KREC Form 402)Primary source Supplementary
  • LouisianaFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    La. R.S. 9:3196-9:3200 (Residential Property Disclosure); duties of seller La. R.S. 9:3198; form prescribed by the Louisiana Real Estate CommissionPrimary source Supplementary
  • MaineFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    33 M.R.S. § 173 (flood-hazard disclosure added by P.L. 2023, c. 585; L.D. 2035)Primary source Supplementary
  • MarylandGeneral
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Md. Code, Real Property § 10-702Primary source Supplementary
  • MassachusettsBuyer-beware
    Corroborated (secondary)· verified June 16, 2026
    No statute — buyer-beware findingSupplementary
  • MichiganFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Mich. Comp. Laws (MCL) 565.951 to 565.966 (Seller Disclosure Act, Act 92 of 1993); form in MCL 565.957; liability limits in MCL 565.955Primary source Supplementary
  • MinnesotaGeneral
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Minn. Stat. §§ 513.52 to 513.60 (general disclosure 513.55; liability 513.57; waiver 513.60)Primary source Supplementary
  • MississippiFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Miss. Code Ann. §§ 89-1-501 to 89-1-527 (Real Estate Transfer Disclosure Requirements; liability 89-1-523; delivery 89-1-503)Primary source Supplementary
  • Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
  • MontanaGeneral
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Mont. Code Ann. § 70-20-502 (also §§ 70-20-501, -503, -504, -505; enacted by Ch. 375, Laws of 2023)Primary source Supplementary
  • NebraskaGeneral
    Corroborated (secondary)· verified June 16, 2026
    Neb. Rev. Stat. § 76-2,120Primary source Supplementary
  • NevadaGeneral
    Corroborated (secondary)· verified June 16, 2026
    Nev. Rev. Stat. §§ 113.120, 113.130, 113.150Primary source Supplementary
  • New HampshireFlood-specific
    Corroborated (secondary)· verified June 16, 2026
    N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 477:4-aPrimary source Supplementary
  • New JerseyFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    P.L.2023, c.93; N.J.S.A. 56:8-19.2 (sellers); N.J.S.A. 46:8-50 (landlords)Primary source Supplementary
  • Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    NMSA 1978, § 47-13-2 (Real Estate Disclosure Act)Primary source Supplementary
  • New YorkFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    N.Y. Real Property Law §§ 462, 465 (Property Condition Disclosure Act), as amended by 2023 N.Y. Laws ch. 484 (S5400/A1967); former § 467 repealedPrimary source Supplementary
  • North CarolinaFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    N.C. Gen. Stat. §§ 47E-4 and 47E-5; 21 NCAC 58A .0114(a)(11)Primary source Supplementary
  • Corroborated (secondary)· verified June 16, 2026
    N.D. Cent. Code § 47-10-02.1 (Property disclosure - Requirements - Exceptions)No statute — buyer-beware findingSupplementary
  • OhioGeneral
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Ohio Rev. Code Ann. § 5302.30 (form prescribed under Ohio Admin. Code 1301:5-6-10)Primary source Supplementary
  • OklahomaGeneral
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Okla. Stat. tit. 60, §§ 831-839 (Residential Property Condition Disclosure Act); flood zone status disclosure in § 833; remedies in § 837Primary source Supplementary
  • OregonFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Or. Rev. Stat. § 105.464 (form of seller's property disclosure statement); revocation rights under ORS 105.465 / 105.475Primary source Supplementary
  • PennsylvaniaFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    68 Pa.C.S. §§ 7301-7314 (Real Estate Seller Disclosure Law); disclosure-statement form per 49 Pa. Code / State Real Estate CommissionPrimary source Supplementary
  • Rhode IslandFlood-specific
    Corroborated (secondary)· verified June 16, 2026
    R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 5-20.8-1 et seq. (esp. 5-20.8-2 disclosure requirements; 5-20.8-5 penalty)Primary source Supplementary
  • South CarolinaFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    S.C. Code Ann. §§ 27-50-40, 27-50-65, 27-50-110Primary source Supplementary
  • South DakotaFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    SDCL § 43-4-44 (and chapter 43-4-37 et seq.)Primary source Supplementary
  • TennesseeGeneral
    Corroborated (secondary)· verified June 16, 2026
    Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 66-5-202, 66-5-208, 66-5-210Primary source Supplementary
  • TexasFlood-specific
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Tex. Prop. Code § 5.008 (as amended by SB 339, 2019)Primary source Supplementary
  • UtahBuyer-beware
    Corroborated (secondary)· verified June 16, 2026
    No statute — buyer-beware findingSupplementary
  • VermontFlood-specific
    Corroborated (secondary)· verified June 16, 2026
    27 V.S.A. § 380 (Act 181, 2024)Primary source Supplementary
  • VirginiaGeneral
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Va. Code Ann. § 55.1-703 (Residential Property Disclosure Act, § 55.1-700 et seq.)Primary source Supplementary
  • WashingtonGeneral
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
  • West VirginiaBuyer-beware
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    No statute — buyer-beware findingSupplementary
  • WisconsinGeneral
    Corroborated (secondary)· verified June 16, 2026
    Wis. Stat. §§ 709.02, 709.03, 709.05Primary source Supplementary
  • WyomingBuyer-beware
    Primary-source verified· verified June 16, 2026
    Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 33-28-303 (agent/licensee disclosure duty only; no seller-disclosure statute)Primary source Supplementary