Hidden Defects a Seller Knew

A $90,000 Broward County Result

Perez Mayoral, P.A. obtained a $90,000 result in Garrigos v. Hernandez, a Broward County dispute over a property defect. Matters of that type usually turn on a small set of documents that existed well before the closing date.

The Rule Before 1985

Florida once followed buyer beware with little softening. A seller who said nothing about a leaking roof or a settling slab generally owed the buyer nothing, on the theory that both sides had an equal chance to inspect. Buyers relied on an inspection and hoped for the best. That approach worked poorly for defects an inspector could not see, which describes most of the expensive ones.

The Standard Florida Courts Apply Now

The rule changed with Johnson v. Davis, 480 So. 2d 625 (Fla. 1985). The Florida Supreme Court held that where the seller of a home knows of facts materially affecting the value of the property that are not readily observable and are not known to the buyer, the seller has a duty to disclose them. A Florida Bar Journal analysis traces how that decision created a nondisclosure claim requiring no proof of a false statement at all.

An as-is clause does not erase the duty on a residential sale in Fort Lauderdale or anywhere else in Broward County. Neither does the buyer’s own inspection.

Three Elements a Buyer Has to Show

Courts break the duty into parts. A buyer bringing a nondisclosure claim has to establish that:

• The defect materially affects the value of the property
• The seller knew of it before closing
• The defect was not readily observable and the buyer did not know of it

All three must be present. A crack the buyer walked past twice will not carry a claim. A corroded cast-iron drain line under a Hollywood slab, known to the seller from a prior plumbing quote, is a different matter.

Where the Proof Usually Hides

Sellers rarely leave a signed admission. Proof comes from records, and across Broward County a surprising share of it sits with the community association. Architectural applications, violation notices, water intrusion complaints, and reserve studies often show a problem documented years before the listing photographs were taken. A Broward HOA lawyer can request those files and set them against the seller’s disclosure form.

Municipal permit history matters just as much. Coral Springs, Plantation, Weston, and Pembroke Pines all keep records that reveal repairs a seller never mentioned, along with work performed without a permit at all.

What a Successful Claim Produces

Remedies depend on timing. Rescission may be available where the problem surfaces close to closing and the transaction can still be unwound. More often the buyer keeps the property and pursues the cost of repair, plus diminished value where the defect follows the home at resale.

Association-related defects add a layer, because responsibility for the repair may rest with the community rather than with the seller. A Broward HOA lawyer can separate the claims that run against the seller from those that run against the association before any demand goes out.

The Practical Sequence for Broward County Buyers

Order of operations matters. Pull the municipal permit history first, then the association file, then prior insurance claims on the address, and only then decide what the disclosure form should have said. Buyers in Parkland and Davie communities are often surprised by how much of the story sits in the architectural review file.

The argument feels like it should turn on memory and testimony, when it nearly always turns on paper. If you bought in Broward County and found a problem the seller had to have known about, we can help you read what those records show.