When you buy a home through a realtor, a disclosure form alerts you to any known trouble spots in the house. It’s a document the seller fills out, revealing flaws or major repairs he’s aware of. But, any home can have problems which have arisen without the owner’s knowledge. Here’s how a disclosure works, and what you need to do once you read it. The seller must reveal repairs he knows have been made to the home. He’ll also be asked to disclose the un-repaired items he knows about. The seller must show the age of the roof, when the home was last painted, whether there have been foundation problems, the age of the heating and cooling system, and whether the appliances work. 

Because there may be problems the owner is unaware of, it’s important you get both a general and a termite inspection. You’ll pay $150 to $200 for both, depending on the size of your home. If the general inspector feels it’s warranted, get a foundation inspection. It’ll cost about $300 for that structural engineering report. And you may want a radon test, depending where you live. That costs anywhere from $125 to $300. So for you, the buyer, a disclosure is the beginning of a process, not the end. And, if you do turn up problems, it might not be the end of the world. Many times you and the seller can reach an agreement on repairing them.