02/16/2026
If you are involved in a real estate transaction or, if you are a real estate agent/broker, you should be familiar with this law:
Florida Statute 475.278(2):
(2) TRANSACTION BROKER RELATIONSHIP.—A transaction broker provides a limited form of representation to a buyer, a seller, or both in a real estate transaction but does not represent either in a fiduciary capacity or as a single agent. The duties of the real estate licensee in this limited form of representation include the following:
(a) Dealing honestly and fairly;
(b) Accounting for all funds;
(c) Using skill, care, and diligence in the transaction;
(d) Disclosing all known facts that materially affect the value of residential real property and are not readily observable to the buyer;
This law means the real estate agent/broker and the Seller must disclose all material defects with the home. One thing which is not readily apparent to a home buyer is termites.
For years I have cautioned the real estate agents we work with to take the WDO inspection report seriously. When the inspector notes Evidence or Damage of termites, it is serious business and now, the agent and the Seller are fully aware of the issue.
On many occasions I have witnessed agents/sellers discard the report, make some repairs to hide the evidence, and then obtain a new WDO report from a different company who provides the "clean" WDO report because the evidence was hidden. That, my friends, is a violation of 475.278(2)(d) and it can get an agent sued.
Here are the charges against a Seller/Agent/Broker from an inspection our company performed in July, 2022, which came to light to a different buyer (ours walked away) when swarmers came out of the walls in May, 2023:
Breach of Contract - Seller
Fraudulent Concealment - Sellers and Agent/Broker.
Non-Disclosure - Seller
Negligence - Seller and Agent/Broker.
Violation of FS 475.278 - real estate agent.
Vicarious liability - Broker.
The lawsuit is for repairs (over $100k), loss of use, loss of enjoyment, devaluation, attorneys fees, court costs, etc., etc....
The Agent discarded our report which showed damage and termites, they had the Seller hide the evidence and then obtained a new "clean" WDO from another company.
The moral of this sad story is:
1: Hire/refer an inspector who can perform treatment.
2: If an issue is found, let the inspection company fix or treat it and then let them issue an updated report showing the treatment.
3. Never try to hide material defects from a Buyer.
4. If you suspect the home has not been maintained or may have defects, tell your Seller to get a Pre-Listing inspection to include a WDO!
