Buyer Due Diligence & Marketplace Disclosures

The marketplace does not inspect properties, confirm who owns them, value them, run title searches, or check a seller's figures. Prices, condition, repair estimates, occupancy, possession, features and financing terms appear exactly as the seller entered them, and they can be wrong, out of date, or incomplete.

A seller stating something on a listing is not evidence of it. Treat every number and claim as a starting point for your own checks.

This list is not exhaustive and is not a substitute for your own lawyer, title company, inspector or lender. Work through it for every property, including one from a seller you already know.

• Ownership and authority. Confirm the seller owns the property, or holds a contract that allows them to assign it, and that everyone who must sign is able to sign. Ask for the deed or the contract.
• Title, liens and judgments. Order a title search. Look for mortgages, tax liens, mechanic's liens, judgments, easements, code liens and any probate, divorce or bankruptcy matter that affects the sale.
• Property taxes and assessments. Check what is owed now, what is unpaid from earlier years, and whether the assessment or exemption will change after a sale.
• Condition. Arrange your own walkthrough and your own inspection. Price the work yourself; do not rely on the seller's repair figure or scope.
• Structure and systems. Roof, foundation, plumbing, electrical, heating and cooling, water damage, mould, pests, and anything the seller marked unknown.
• Occupancy and possession. Find out who is in the property, on what terms, and what you would actually receive at closing. Read every lease. Confirm deposits, rent owed, notice periods and local rules for removing an occupant.
• Access and utilities. Confirm how you get in, whether utilities are on, whose name they are in, and what it costs to restore them.
• Zoning, permits and code. Check permitted use, unpermitted work, open permits, and any open code enforcement or condemnation case.
• Flood, insurance and environment. Check the flood position, get an insurance quote before you commit, and look into anything the property's history suggests.
• HOA or association. Confirm dues, arrears, special assessments, rules on renting, and any approval a buyer needs.
• Boundaries and land. Confirm parcel, lot size and boundaries against the survey rather than a map pin, which is approximate.
• Numbers you plan to rely on. Rents, comparable sales, holding costs and resale assumptions are yours to prove, whoever first mentioned them.

Some fields on a listing were filled from a public-record data provider and are shown with the date they were read. Public records lag reality and contain errors. Estimated value, equity, mortgage balances, payments, lender and loan type are estimates produced by that provider, not an appraisal, not a payoff figure, and not a statement from any lender.

Confirm anything you rely on with the county, the title company or the lender directly.

Where a seller has added projected figures for a possible later resale, they are the seller's own estimate, shown with their name and the date they made it. They are not the terms of your purchase, not verified income, not a forecast by the marketplace, and not a guaranteed return. A projection is not the asking price and not the financing offered on the purchase in front of you.

When a seller offers financing, the down payment, monthly payment, interest rate, term and balloon shown are what the seller says they will accept. Nothing is approved, underwritten or committed until it is in a signed agreement.

• Have the note, the security instrument and any servicing arrangement reviewed by your own lawyer before you sign or pay anything.
• Ask what happens if you pay late, what is included in the monthly payment, and who pays taxes and insurance.
• Ask whether an existing mortgage stays in place, and what that means for you if it is called.
• Confirm how and where the deed is held, and what releases it to you.

Some listings offer a contract to buy, not the property itself. If you take an assignment, you are stepping into the seller's contract with the owner.

• Read the underlying contract in full, including price, deadlines, deposits and whether assignment is even permitted.
• Confirm how much of what you pay is the purchase price and how much is the assignment fee, and who is paid what at closing.
• Confirm the closing date you would inherit and what happens to your money if the owner does not close.
• Confirm the seller's disclosure obligations in your state and whether a licence is required for what they are doing.

Photos are supplied by the seller and are not verified. They may be old, may show a different unit, and may leave out damage. Bedrooms, bathrooms, square footage, year built and lot size are as stated by the seller or drawn from public records; measure and confirm anything that affects your price.

Status labels — available, under contract, sold — are set by the seller and reflect what they last told the marketplace. A property can be gone before its listing changes. Ask the seller to confirm availability before you spend money on inspections or reports.

The marketplace does not hold funds, take deposits, act as escrow, or take part in your closing. Send earnest money only to a title company, escrow agent or attorney trust account you have verified independently, using contact details you obtained yourself rather than from an email or message.

Wire fraud is common in property transactions. Confirm wiring instructions by phone with a number you already trust, and be suspicious of any late change to them.

Messages go through the marketplace so both sides keep a record. A seller's phone number and email address are only shown when that seller has chosen to publish them. Keep your questions and their answers in the marketplace record where you can, and get anything you are relying on in writing before closing.

The marketplace hosts listings that members post and passes messages between them.

• It does not represent you or the seller, and it is not your agent or broker.
• It does not verify listings, value property, hold money, or take part in negotiations or closings.
• It does not endorse any seller. Badges on a profile describe only what was checked; none certifies ownership, condition or title of any property.
• Counts and history on a seller's page are computed from the marketplace record. A sale marked reported is the seller's word alone; nothing confirms a buyer's side of it.

If a listing appears inaccurate, misleading or not the seller's to sell, stop and report it through your community administrator or the contact route your community gave you, and do not send money in the meantime. Reports are reviewed by an administrator; the marketplace cannot resolve a dispute between you and a seller, and it cannot recover money you have already paid.

Nothing on this marketplace is legal, tax, financial, appraisal or investment advice. Browsing or messaging creates no agreement to buy anything, and no outcome, profit or resale is promised or implied. Real estate carries risk, including the loss of the money you put in. Use your own professionals.