Coldwell Banker Now Requiring Disclosure From Its Home Sellers : Real estate: The questionnaire on property defects is a first for a national broker. But it’s already mandated in California.

Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate has begun requiring the home sellers it represents to fill out disclosure forms for prospective buyers, becoming the first national realty company to do so.

But the new requirement will not affect home buyers in Orange County or elsewhere in California, who since 1987 have been protected by a state law that mandates the disclosure of a residential property’s defects before it can be sold.

“In California, we will continue to use the forms that were already required here,” said Robert Arrigoni, president of Coldwell Banker, based in Mission Viejo.

Coldwell Banker’s two-page questionnaire, however, could make waves in the 48 states that have no disclosure laws for residential property sales. Only California and Maine have enacted such legislation.

A smattering of independent brokers around the country require disclosure statements, but not national realty companies like Coldwell Banker, which has 1,900 offices throughout the United States, 500 of which are company-owned. Only the company-owned offices outside California and Maine will be required to use the forms, Arrigoni said, though many of the franchises are expected to follow suit.

“We applaud the step Coldwell Banker is taking,” said Stephen Driesler, senior vice president of government affairs for the Washington-based National Assn. of Realtors. “When a major franchiser requires disclosure, it encourages other states to adopt laws that protect home buyers and sellers.”

The real estate industry has been lobbying for years to get states to pass legislation similar to California’s.

“Disputes between home buyers, realtors and sellers over defects that should have been disclosed account for 75% of all legislation associated with home sales,” Driesler said.

“If people know what they are buying--if they know in advance the roof leaks so that they can negotiate a fair price with that in mind--it makes everyone’s life a lot easier,” he added.

The Coldwell Banker “seller’s disclosure statement” asks such questions as:

* “Do you have any knowledge of termites, dry rot or pests on or affecting the property?”

* “Are you aware of any past or present cracks or flaws in the walls or foundations?”

* “Do you know of any sliding, settling . . . or earth stability problems that have occurred on the property or in the immediate neighborhood?”

Judi Herzberg, senior counsel for the California Assn. of Realtors, said the Coldwell Banker questions are “very much in line” with the questions included on the state form.

That’s not surprising, considering that Coldwell Banker has required disclosure statements in California since the early 1980s--before the state approved such a requirement.

“We feel that we were instrumental in getting the state to adopt a seller disclosure law,” Arrigoni said.

Arrigoni said Coldwell Banker started the practice in California a decade ago because there was so much real estate litigation in the state compared to other parts of the county.

“It took us a while to sift through all the information we had collected from other states before we decided to go nationwide with the program,” he said.