Florida home buyers and renters to receive information about prior flooding in their properties under new legislation
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Step aside, "caveat emptor" approach, Florida's residents are now equipped with crucial flood history details, thanks to a spankin' new law that Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into action on a Friday night shindig. This isn't just move-ins getting the lowdown on their waterlogged past digs, but renters, mobile home owners, and developers too. Folks, we're covering all real estate bases with this bipartisan bill introduced by Rep. Christine Huschofsky (a Parkland area Dem).
Starting October 1, landlords spill the beans on past water woes to their potential tenants. If they fail to disclose a flood incident that leads to "substantial loss or damage," tenants can bail on their lease within 30 days and claim back any prepaid rent.
Environmental groups, including the Environmental Defense Fund, played a pivotal role in pushing for this bill. Rachel Rhode, the Climate Resilience Coasts and Watershed Initiative manager for the Environmental Defense Fund, emphasized the importance of protection for Floridians in the sunshine state, particularly with so many new residents choosing to rent first.
Property history can be a fickle beast. Experts agree that the best way to gauge a property's flood future is considering its flooding past. However, Floridians often struggled to uncover this info before this law.
The new bill closes one such loophole, requiring home sellers to disclose previous flood incidents, rather than only if an insurance claim was filed. Moreover, the provision now includes whether the property received federal, state, local, or private flood-related assistance.
Notably, this law rolled back from a previous version, which had removed the direct question for home sellers about flooding incidents. However, the Miami Herald dug up a stormy debate on this issue, exposing how Florida lagged behind other at-risk states in protecting home buyers from flooding hazards.
The new law is a significant stride towards addressing these concerns, with added accountability for landlords and mobile home park owners.
Rhode and fellow flood experts also voiced enthusiasm for the added protection for tenants and the accountability for landlords and mobile home park owners. So, hooray for a drier future in the sunshine state!
Enrichment Data:
- Prior to this new law, Florida trailed other flood-prone states in implementing consumer protection measures for flood disclosure. The new legislation helps tackle this issue by increasing transparency in the real estate market regarding flood risk history.
- The expanded protections apply not only to home purchasing but also to rentals and mobile home residencies.
- The law also includes consequences for landlords and mobile home park owners who fail to disclose the flood risk or past flood incidents, giving tenants the right to terminate the lease and recoup prepaid rent.
- The law involves both home sellers and buyers, requiring sellers to disclose any flood damage that occurred during their ownership, and includes information on whether the property received federal, state, local, or private flood-related assistance.
- The law's provisions for landlords and mobile home park owners take effect on July 1, 2025, while the requirement for home sellers to disclose flood damage becomes effective on October 1, 2025.
- In an effort to enhance transparency, the new environmental-science focused legislation signed by Governor Ron DeSantis demands that landlords reveal past flood incidents to tenants, starting October 1.
- This groundbreaking law, also backed by the Environmental Defense Fund, requires home sellers to disclose previous flood incidents and any flood-related assistance received, whether federal, state, local, or private.
- With this law, Florida aims to bridge the gap in protecting homebuyers from flooding hazards by addressing concerns in the real-estate market, not only for home purchases but also for rentals and mobile home residencies, ultimately paving the way for environmentally conscious investing in the housing-market.
