What Florida sellers must disclose when selling a Tampa home

Florida's duty to disclose: Johnson v. Davis

Florida's disclosure rule for homes comes from a court decision rather than one statute. In Johnson v. Davis (1985), the Florida Supreme Court held that when a seller of a home knows of facts that materially affect its value, and those facts are not readily observable and not known to the buyer, the seller must disclose them.

Three parts of that rule matter in practice:

• Knowledge. The duty covers what you know. You are not required to hire inspectors to find problems you don't know about.
• Material to value. A roof leak, recurring plumbing backups, past water intrusion, foundation cracks or unpermitted additions usually qualify. Cosmetic wear usually does not.
• Not readily observable. A buyer can see a stained carpet. A buyer can't see that the ceiling stain came from a leak you patched but never fixed.

"As is" does not change this. An as-is contract lets the buyer inspect and walk away but spares you from making repairs. It does not protect a seller who hides a known defect. Many sellers complete a written seller's property disclosure form, which is not required by statute in Florida but gives both sides a clear record of what was disclosed.

The rest of this guide covers notices required by specific laws. They sit on top of the general duty, not in place of it.

Florida seller disclosures at a glance

Many of these notices are already printed into the standard Florida purchase contracts and addenda that agents use, so a seller often satisfies them just by using current forms. Your agent or attorney should confirm the version in use reflects the 2025 flood disclosure changes.

Florida's flood disclosure law for home sellers

Florida added a flood disclosure requirement in 2024 (HB 1049), effective October 1, 2024, and expanded it effective October 1, 2025. Under section 689.302, a seller of residential property must complete the disclosure at or before the time the contract is signed. The current form asks whether the seller:

• Has knowledge of any flooding that damaged the property during their ownership
• Filed a claim with an insurance provider for flood damage, including a claim with the National Flood Insurance Program
• Received assistance for flood damage, including from the Federal Emergency Management Agency

The law defines flooding broadly, including overflow of inland or tidal waters, unusual and rapid runoff and sustained standing water from rainfall. The 2025 change means a seller must now disclose known flood damage even if no claim was filed and no aid was received. The form also reminds buyers that standard homeowners policies do not cover flood.

Why this matters in Tampa

Hurricanes Helene and Milton in 2024 brought surge and rain flooding to Hillsborough County. The county estimated $1.8 billion in residential damage from Helene's surge alone, and Milton's rainfall, up to 18 inches in spots, caused widespread flooding in areas such as the University Area that had not flooded before. If your home took on water, gather the dates, the insurance claim numbers, the adjuster's report, any FEMA correspondence and receipts for repairs and permits. A buyer who sees a well-documented repair is often more comfortable than one who discovers an unexplained patch.

Sources: WUSF, Helene damage in the Tampa Bay region; Axios Tampa Bay, Milton flooding in North Tampa.

Sources: s. 689.302, F.S. (2026); Florida Realtors, Florida expands flood disclosures (2025).

Radon gas and lead-based paint disclosures

Radon

Section 404.056(5) requires a specific radon notice on at least one document signed at or before the contract for the sale of any building. The notice explains that radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that can present health risks over time, that levels above federal and state guidelines have been found in Florida buildings and that more information is available from the county health department. The law requires the notice, not a test. If you have tested, share the results.

Lead-based paint in pre-1978 Tampa homes

Many homes in older Tampa neighborhoods, such as Seminole Heights, Hyde Park, Palma Ceia and Davis Islands, were built before 1978, when lead-based paint was banned for residential use. For most of these homes, federal rules require the seller to:

• Disclose any known lead-based paint or lead hazards
• Provide any lead reports or records you have
• Give the buyer the EPA pamphlet Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home
• Include a lead warning statement in the contract, signed by both sides
• Give the buyer 10 days to conduct a lead inspection or risk assessment, unless the buyer waives it in writing

Keep a copy of the signed disclosure for three years.

Sources: s. 404.056, F.S. (2026); EPA, real estate disclosures about lead-based paint.

HOA and condo disclosures when selling in Tampa

Homeowners associations

If your home is in a mandatory homeowners association, section 720.401 requires a disclosure summary before the buyer signs. It covers mandatory membership, recorded restrictive covenants, the current regular assessment, any special assessments and the fact that unpaid assessments can become a lien. If the summary isn't provided before the contract, the buyer can cancel within 3 days after receiving it or before closing, whichever comes first. In master-planned areas such as Westchase, where fees vary by village, give the buyer the figures for your village.

Condos

Condo sellers must give the buyer the association documents listed in section 718.503, including the declaration, bylaws, rules, budget, financial statement, FAQ sheet, governance form and, where applicable, the milestone inspection summary and structural integrity reserve study. The buyer then has 7 days, excluding weekends and legal holidays, to cancel. Order these early, since a delay in delivery delays the start of that window. Our condo guide explains these documents from the buyer's side.

For either type, the title company will order an estoppel certificate from the association confirming what you owe before closing.

Property tax, energy and CDD disclosures

Property tax disclosure

Section 689.261 requires a notice at or before the contract telling the buyer not to rely on the seller's current property taxes, because a change of ownership or improvements triggers reassessment. This matters most for long-time owners. If you have held your home for decades with a homestead exemption and the Save Our Homes cap, your tax bill may be far below what the buyer will pay after the home is reassessed at market value on the next January 1. Don't quote your tax bill as the buyer's future cost.

That same gap is the benefit you may be able to take with you. See Florida homestead portability and the portability calculator. Figures there reflect current law; Amendment 3 on the November 3, 2026 ballot could change homestead exemption amounts starting in 2027.

Energy-efficiency information

Section 553.996 says a buyer of real property with a building must be given information about the state's building energy-efficiency rating system at or before signing the contract. Standard Florida purchase contracts, such as the FAR-9 form used statewide, typically include a buyer acknowledgment of the energy brochure in this section.

Community development districts

Some newer communities in Hillsborough County are inside a community development district (CDD) that levies its own assessments. The statutory CDD notice in section 190.048 is required in the contract for the initial sale, usually by the builder. On a resale, CDD assessments appear on the property tax bill, and a seller who knows about them should make sure the buyer does too, since they affect the cost of owning the home.

Sinkhole claims and insurance history

Under section 627.7073(2)(c), a seller who made a sinkhole claim that the insurer paid must tell the buyer before closing that the claim was paid and whether the full amount was used to repair the damage. Parts of Hillsborough County sit within the limestone karst terrain of west-central Florida, an area the U.S. Geological Survey and the Florida Geological Survey have documented for sinkhole activity, so gather the engineering report, the repair contract and any completion certificate if this applies to you.

Source: USGS, Sinkholes, West-Central Florida.

Buyers and their insurers can also see a home's past claims through industry databases, so undisclosed roof, water or wind claims tend to surface anyway. Disclosing them up front, with repair records, is usually the smoother path.

Open permits and unpermitted work in Tampa

Florida has no single statute that makes a seller close every open permit before sale, but open or expired permits often come up in the buyer's title search or lender review and can delay closing. Unpermitted additions, enclosed garages or converted porches can also be a material fact under the general duty to disclose.

• City of Tampa addresses: search by address on the City of Tampa Accela Citizen Access portal.
• Unincorporated Hillsborough County: use Hillsborough County's permit records search. Records from January 20, 2021 onward are on HillsGovHub; older records back to 2005 are on the county's permit reports page.
• Temple Terrace and Plant City issue their own permits, so check with those cities directly.

Closing an old permit can mean scheduling a final inspection, finding the original contractor or hiring a new one to take it over. Start weeks before you list, not the week before closing. For more pre-listing steps, see preparing an older Tampa home to sell.

What long-time Tampa owners should gather before listing

Owners who have been in a home for 20 or 30 years often know it well but have records spread across drawers and old email accounts. A folder built before listing makes disclosure easier and more accurate:

• Roof: installation year, permit and any wind mitigation or four-point inspection reports
• Insurance claims history: wind, water, flood and sinkhole, with claim numbers and repair records
• Flood history: any water intrusion during your ownership, including 2024's storms, and FEMA or other assistance received
• Permits: major work on the roof, HVAC, water heater, electrical, plumbing, windows, pool and additions
• Known issues: leaks, plumbing backups, cracks, pests or wood-destroying organism treatment
• Lead paint and radon test results, if any, for pre-1978 homes
• HOA or condo documents, current assessment amounts and any special assessments
• CDD assessments shown on your tax bill, if applicable
• Survey, title policy and deed from your purchase
• Records of improvements you've made, which also help with your capital gains basis (see Costs and Money)

A hypothetical example

A couple selling a 1950s block home in a South Tampa neighborhood had water in the garage and one bedroom during a 2024 storm. They filed a flood claim, replaced drywall and flooring with a permit and had the work inspected. On the flood disclosure they answer yes to flood damage and to the claim, and they attach the adjuster's summary, the permit record and the contractor's invoice. The buyer's inspector confirms the repair. Compare that to a seller who repaired quietly with no permit and no paperwork: the same history becomes a question mark that can stall a deal or lead to a dispute after closing. This example is illustrative only.

Next steps

Disclosure is one piece of the plan. The Downsizing Guide lays out the full sequence, and estimating net proceeds helps you see what the sale may leave you with. When you're ready, you can get matched with a local agent who can walk you through the disclosure forms used in Hillsborough County.