Maryland Residential Property Disclosure and Disclaimer Statement (statutory form implementing Md. Code, Real Property Section 10-702; form promulgated by the Maryland Real Estate Commission / Maryland DLLR) — Maryland Code, Real Property Article, Title 10, Subtitle 7, Section 10-702 ("Single family residential real property disclosure requirements"), supplemented by the federal Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act of 1992 / Title X (42 U.S.C. Section 4852d; 24 CFR Part 35, 40 CFR Part 745) for housing built before 1978, and Maryland's Reduction of Lead Risk in Housing Act (Md. Code, Environment Article, Title 6, Subtitle 8) for pre-1978 rental/registered properties.
Maryland is a hybrid/modified caveat-emptor state, not a pure one. Section 10-702 does not require full affirmative disclosure of every property condition the way "pure disclosure" states do. Instead, it forces every seller of residential real property with four or fewer units to choose one of two statutory paths and deliver a completed statutory form to the buyer on or before the buyer signs the contract of sale: (1) a "Disclosure" statement, in which the seller checks yes/no/unknown/not-applicable for the known condition of specific systems and features (roof, structure, basement/moisture, plumbing, electrical, HVAC, water supply, sewage/septic, insects/wood rot, insulation, environmental hazards, zoning/permits, HOA, etc.), or (2) a "Disclaimer" statement, selling the property "as is" with no representations or warranties as to condition. The critical point that keeps Maryland from being a pure caveat-emptor jurisdiction: even a seller who elects the "as is" Disclaimer must still disclose "latent defects" -- material defects actually known to the seller that a buyer could not discover through a careful visual inspection and that pose a direct threat to health or safety of the purchaser or occupants. Buyers must sign and date a written acknowledgment of receipt attached to the contract; a buyer who does not receive the statement before contracting has an unconditional right to rescind the contract (and get their deposit back) at any time before receipt or within 5 days after actual receipt. Separately and regardless of which state-law option the seller picks, federal law (Title X) requires sellers of any home built before 1978 to give buyers an EPA-approved lead hazard information pamphlet, disclose known lead-based paint/hazards and any available reports, attach a signed federal Lead Warning Statement to the contract, and give buyers a 10-day window to conduct a lead risk assessment before being bound -- this federal lead disclosure obligation applies even to sales that are otherwise exempt from Section 10-702 (e.g., new construction never occupied, foreclosure sales), so it functions as the true statutory floor in Maryland.
No substantive 2025-2026 amendments to the Section 10-702 disclosure/disclaimer framework itself were found. A search of the 2026 Maryland General Assembly regular session (adjourned sine die) turned up House Bill 738 (2026), but that bill concerns an unrelated topic -- establishing transfer-on-death deeds and amending the Maryland Uniform Disclaimer of Property Interests Act for nonprobate transfers at death -- not the seller property condition disclosure statute. No pending or enacted bill was identified that changes the substantive content of the Residential Property Disclosure and Disclaimer Statement, its exemptions, or the 5-day rescission right for 2025 or 2026. The statutory form itself is periodically reissued/reformatted by the Maryland Real Estate Commission (current version referenced by real estate practitioners as the "2026" edition on form-hosting sites), but this reflects routine form maintenance rather than a legislative change to seller obligations. Sellers and agents should still check mgaleg.maryland.gov directly each session, since form updates can lag or precede statutory text changes.
Facts on this page reflect research current as of 2026-07-05. Programs, rates, and laws change — confirm current figures with the relevant state agency before relying on them.