California Transfer Disclosure Statement and Seller Disclosure Requirements

The California Transfer Disclosure Statement: the short answer

The Real Estate Transfer Disclosure Statement (TDS) is the form California sellers of most homes of one to four units must fill out and give the buyer. It is set out in Civil Code section 1102.6 and covers the home's features, known defects and problems, and includes a section for the agents' own visual inspection. A buyer cannot waive it: Civil Code section 1102(c) says any waiver "is void as against public policy."

The TDS is only one of several disclosures in a typical California sale. A seller usually also delivers a Natural Hazard Disclosure Statement, a notice about supplemental property tax bills, written statements on smoke alarms, water heater bracing and water-conserving plumbing, and, depending on the home, notices about Mello-Roos taxes, wildfire zones and lead-based paint. The table below lists each one with the law behind it.

Transfer Disclosure Statement rules

Which sales need a TDS

The article applies to sales, exchanges, installment contracts, lease options and ground leases with improvements of residential property (Civil Code section 1102(a)). Section 1102(b) borrows the Business and Professions Code definitions, and section 10018.08 defines single-family residential property as real property with one to four dwelling units, a unit in a stock cooperative, condominium or planned development, or a manufactured home sold through a broker. So condos and duplexes are covered, not just detached houses.

Which sales are exempt (Civil Code 1102.2)

The exemptions include sales ordered by a court, including probate sales; foreclosure sales and deeds in lieu of foreclosure; sales by a fiduciary administering a trust, guardianship, conservatorship or estate (unless the trustee of a revocable trust is a former owner or lived in the home within the past year); sales between co-owners; and transfers to a spouse or to a relative in the direct line. Exempt sellers still owe the other disclosures that apply and the general duty not to hide known defects. See our probate real estate guide for estate sales.

Timing: "as soon as practicable before transfer of title"

For an ordinary sale, the seller delivers the TDS as soon as practicable before title transfers (Civil Code section 1102.3). In practice, most California purchase contracts set a short deadline after acceptance for the seller to deliver it.

The buyer's right to cancel after a late disclosure

If the TDS, or a material amendment to it, is delivered after the buyer's offer is signed, the buyer may terminate within three days after delivery in person, or five days after delivery by mail or by electronic record when the parties agreed to deal electronically (section 1102.3). The buyer terminates by written notice to the seller or the seller's agent.

As-is sales still need a TDS

Selling "as is" changes who pays for repairs, not what the seller must disclose. Civil Code section 1102.1 says the article does not reduce anyone's duty to disclose facts materially affecting the home's value or desirability. Our as-is selling guide explains how to price and market a home that needs work.

Natural hazard disclosure in California

The six zones on the Natural Hazard Disclosure Statement

Civil Code section 1103(c) requires disclosure when the seller or agent knows, or a posted local map shows, that the home lies in any of these:

1. A FEMA special flood hazard area (any Zone A or V).
2. An area of potential flooding from dam failure.
3. A very high fire hazard severity zone, with a note that it is subject to defensible space rules.
4. A wildland area that may contain substantial forest fire risk (a state responsibility area).
5. An earthquake fault zone.
6. A seismic hazard zone.

The statement must be made on the form in section 1103.2. Most sellers order a report from a natural hazard disclosure company that checks the parcel against the official maps.

Relying on official maps and reports

A seller or agent is not liable for errors in information from public agencies or qualified experts, if the error was not within their personal knowledge and they used ordinary care in getting and passing it on (Civil Code section 1102.4). That is the main reason to order a professional report rather than fill in the form from memory.

Wildfire zone notices

For homes in a high or very high fire hazard severity zone, two more rules apply. A home built before January 1, 2010 needs a fire hardening notice (Civil Code 1102.6f), and the seller must provide documentation of compliance with defensible space rules or local vegetation ordinances (Civil Code 1102.19, in effect since July 1, 2021). Our California fire zones guide explains how to find a home's zone and what each rule requires.

Other required California seller disclosures

Mello-Roos and special assessments

If a home is subject to a Mello-Roos special tax or a 1915 Act bond, the seller must make a good-faith effort to get a notice from each district and give it to the buyer (Civil Code 1102.6b). Our Mello-Roos guide covers what the notice must show.

Supplemental property tax bills

Civil Code 1102.6c requires a notice warning the buyer that the assessor will revalue the home, that one or two supplemental bills may follow, and that those bills are not paid through the lender's impound account. Our property tax guide explains the math.

Water-conserving plumbing fixtures

Sellers of single-family homes must disclose in writing that state law has required water-conserving fixtures since January 1, 2017, and whether the home has any noncompliant fixtures (Civil Code 1102.155).

Smoke alarms and water heater bracing

Every single-family home sold must have an operable smoke alarm, and the seller must give a written statement of compliance (Health and Safety Code 13113.8). Every water heater must be braced, anchored or strapped against earthquake motion, and the seller must certify compliance in writing (Health and Safety Code 19211).

Registered sex offender database notice

Every contract to sell one to four units must include a set notice telling the buyer that the Department of Justice keeps a public database of registered sex offenders (Civil Code 2079.10a). The notice points to the database; the seller does not research it.

Lead-based paint in homes built before 1978

Under the federal disclosure rule, sellers of most pre-1978 homes must disclose known lead-based paint and hazards, give the buyer the EPA pamphlet "Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home," and give the buyer a 10-day period for a paint inspection or risk assessment, which the parties can change in writing.

Deaths on the property

A seller does not have to disclose a death on the property that happened more than three years before the buyer's offer (Civil Code 1710.2). A death within three years may be a material fact, and a seller may not lie in answer to a direct question.

What agents must disclose

The agent's visual inspection

A broker who lists the home, or cooperates with the listing broker, must make a reasonably competent and diligent visual inspection of the accessible areas and disclose to the buyer every fact materially affecting value or desirability that the inspection would reveal (Civil Code 2079). The agents' findings go in their sections of the TDS.

What happens if a disclosure is missing

A missing or defective disclosure does not by itself cancel a completed sale. But anyone who willfully or negligently fails to comply is liable for the buyer's actual damages (Civil Code 1102.13). Most disputes turn on what the seller knew and when.

Worked example: disclosure timing and the cancellation window

A seller in a very high fire hazard severity zone accepts an offer on June 1. The home was built in 1998, so the seller owes a TDS, an NHD statement, the fire hardening notice and defensible space documentation.

The amendment restarts the clock because section 1102.3 covers "any disclosure, or any material amendment of any disclosure." Contract contingency periods run separately, so buyers should track both.

How to complete and deliver California seller disclosures

1. Gather records. Permits, repair invoices, inspection reports, insurance claims, HOA documents and any notices from the city.
2. Order the natural hazard report. Check the parcel against the flood, fire, fault and seismic maps.
3. Fill in the TDS yourself. Answer from your own knowledge. If unsure, say so and explain.
4. Attach reports you already have. Earlier pest, roof or home inspections usually need to be listed.
5. Deliver early, and keep proof. Use a signed receipt or e-signature record so the cancellation window is clear.
6. Update when facts change. A new leak or a notice from the city after delivery calls for an amendment.

Buyers can see where disclosures fit in the whole process in our home buying guide, and sellers in our home selling guide.

Common seller disclosure mistakes

• Leaving out repaired problems. A past leak or foundation repair is still part of the home's history; disclose it with the repair records.
• Writing "unknown" for things you know. The TDS asks what you know, and a buyer's later evidence can show you knew.
• Relying on "as is" language. It does not remove disclosure duties.
• Not reading HOA documents. Pending special assessments or litigation are often material. See our HOA law guide.
• Skipping the fire documents. Sellers in high and very high zones need both the 1102.6f notice (for pre-2010 homes) and 1102.19 documentation.