What do I have to disclose when I sell a house?
The forms a seller completes in England and Wales, what each one asks, what the honest answer looks like when you genuinely do not know, and where sellers get into trouble.
- Difficulty
- intermediate
- Time
- 15 min
- Read
- 5 min
- Safety
- caution
Short answer
In England and Wales you complete a property information form and a fittings and contents form, plus a leasehold form for a flat. They ask about disputes, notices, alterations, guarantees, flooding, rights of way and services. Answer accurately from your own knowledge; where you genuinely do not know, say so rather than guessing. False answers can support a misrepresentation claim after completion.
Sellers underestimate these forms because they arrive as paperwork among other paperwork. They are not administrative. They are statements the buyer's conveyancer will rely on, and the buyer's remedy for an untrue one is a claim against the seller personally, after completion, when the buyer already owns the house. The safe posture is honesty about what you know and clarity about what you do not.
Safety
Step by step
- Know which forms you will get.Under the Law Society's conveyancing protocol the standard set is the property information form and the fittings and contents form, with a leasehold information form for a flat and further forms for a new home or a commonhold unit. Your conveyancer supplies them.
- Answer disputes and complaints carefully.The form asks about disputes with neighbours and about complaints made to or by you regarding anything that may affect the property. A boundary argument, a noise complaint, or a letter about a hedge all count, even if it was years ago and even if it was resolved.
- List every alteration and find the paperwork.Extensions, loft conversions, conservatories, replacement windows, removed walls, new boilers, rewires. For each, the buyer's conveyancer will want planning permission where needed, building regulations completion certificates, FENSA or equivalent certificates for windows, and gas and electrical certification.
- Deal with guarantees honestly.Damp proofing, timber treatment, cavity wall insulation, underpinning, a roof, a boiler, double glazing. If you have the paperwork, provide it. If a guarantee exists but the company has ceased trading, say so — that is a common and honest answer.
- Answer the services and rights questions from what you know.Where the drains run, whether the water supply is shared, whether anyone has a right to cross your land, whether you cross anyone else's. If the answer is that you do not know, that is a legitimate answer and better than a wrong one.
- Be specific about flooding.The form asks whether the property has flooded and from what source, including groundwater and surface water, not only rivers. Buyers check flood data anyway, and an inconsistent answer damages your credibility on everything else.
- Complete the fittings and contents form properly.It is the contractual list of what stays and what goes — curtains, light fittings, garden shrubs, the shed, the cooker. Completion-day disputes about a removed light fitting are entirely a product of this form being filled in casually.
- Keep a copy of everything you signed.If a question is raised years later, the only useful evidence is the form as you completed it plus any covering explanation you gave. Keep them with the sale file.
Tips
- Fill the forms in before you have a buyer. It gives you time to chase certificates rather than answering under pressure.
- If a guarantee company has gone out of business, say so and hand over the original document anyway — some guarantees were backed by an insurer that still exists.
- Write a short covering note explaining anything unusual. A clear explanation attached to the form heads off three rounds of enquiries.
Common mistakes
- Filling the forms in quickly to get them off the desk — They are the seller's own legal statements. Everything else in the sale is done by professionals; this is the one document the seller is personally answerable for.
- Leaving the fittings and contents form vague — It defines what you are contractually obliged to leave. Ambiguity here becomes a dispute on completion day when the removal van is loaded.
If it doesn't work
You cannot find a building regulations certificate
Cause: Old work, or paperwork lost in a previous sale — Fix: Ask the council's building control department for a copy — they hold records. If none exists, tell your conveyancer; an indemnity policy is the usual route and is cheap. Do not answer as though consent was obtained.
Work was done by a previous owner and you know nothing about it
Cause: You are being asked about a period you were not there for — Fix: Say exactly that on the form, with the date you bought. Buyers accept a clear 'this predates my ownership' far more readily than a vague answer.
The buyer's conveyancer keeps raising more enquiries
Cause: Usually an incomplete answer or a missing document rather than suspicion — Fix: Answer completely the first time, attach the documents, and ask your conveyancer to send them as a bundle. Each round of enquiries adds weeks to the transaction.
Questions people ask
Can I just answer 'not known' to everything?
No. 'Not known' is honest where it is true and evasive where it is not, and a buyer's conveyancer will raise enquiries on a form answered that way. Repeatedly claiming not to know things a resident owner would know is itself a red flag.
Do I have to disclose a difficult neighbour?
You must answer the question actually asked, which is about disputes and complaints rather than about your opinion of anyone. If there has been a complaint, a formal approach, or correspondence, disclose it. Ask your conveyancer where the line falls in your case.
What happens if I get an answer wrong?
An innocent mistake is different from a knowingly false answer, but a buyer who suffers loss because they relied on an untrue statement may have a misrepresentation claim. Rescission is possible in serious cases; damages are more common.
Is Scotland the same?
No. In Scotland the seller completes a property questionnaire as part of the Home Report, which covers similar ground and is provided to buyers before offers rather than after acceptance.