Prior to the new law, the Sunshine State was one of 18 states that did not require flood disclosure as part of the home selling process.

“For the first time, Florida home sellers will have to disclose certain aspects of a property’s flood history, under legislation Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law this week,” reports Amy Green for Inside Climate News. Prior to the new law, Florida was one of 18 states that did not require flood disclosure as part of a home transaction, despite being at significant and increasing risk of sea level rise and major hurricanes and tropical storms, including Hurricane Ian in 2022, which was the costliest storm in state history and the third-costliest nationally.
“The measure requires home sellers to provide a flood disclosure form ‘at or before the time the sales contract is executed.’ The document must include whether the seller ever has filed an insurance claim or received federal assistance because of flood damage on the property,” writes Green. It’s a step forward for home buyer rights in the state, advocates say, but loopholes exist. For example, sellers aren’t required to disclose in cases when properties were flooded but no insurance claim was filed or federal assistance accepted. Sellers are also not required to disclose if the home is in a flood zone or if access roads to the property are prone to flooding.
FULL STORY: New Law to Provide Florida Homebuyers With More Transparency on Flood History

New Florida Law Curbs HOA Power
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New Tennessee Law Allows No-Cost Incentives for Affordable Housing
Local governments in the Volunteer State can now offer developers incentives like increased density, lower parking requirements, and priority permitting for affordable housing projects.

Planners’ Complicity in Excessive Traffic Deaths
Professor Wes Marshall’s provocatively-titled new book, "Killed by a Traffic Engineer," has stimulated fierce debates. Are his criticisms justified? Let’s examine the degree that traffic engineers contribute to avoidable traffic deaths.

Study: Housing Crisis is About Affordability, not Supply
New research shows that there is no overall shortage of housing units, but all U.S. metropolitan areas face a severe lack of affordable units for low-income renters.

Are Race-Based Lawsuits Affecting Community Lenders?
Shelterforce spoke with community lending leaders and experts about the current mood across the sector. What, if anything, are organizations doing to avoid becoming the next target of conservative activists?

New Park Promotes Community and Connectivity in Lewisville, Texas
The city of Lewisville just celebrated the opening of Glory Park/Parque la Gloria, helping to improve park access and the quality of life for residents.
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HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Colorado Energy Office
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