Do you have to disclose a death in the home in Florida?

What section 689.25 says

This is the full current text, from the 2026 Florida Statutes:

689.25 Failure to disclose homicide, suicide, deaths, or diagnosis of HIV or AIDS infection in an occupant of real property.

(1)(a) The fact that an occupant of real property is infected or has been infected with human immunodeficiency virus or diagnosed with acquired immune deficiency syndrome is not a material fact that must be disclosed in a real estate transaction.

(b) The fact that a property was, or was at any time suspected to have been, the site of a homicide, suicide, or death is not a material fact that must be disclosed in a real estate transaction.

(2) A cause of action shall not arise against an owner of real property, his or her agent, an agent of a transferee of real property, or a person licensed under chapter 475 for the failure to disclose to the transferee that the property was or was suspected to have been the site of a homicide, suicide, or death or that an occupant of that property was infected with human immunodeficiency virus or diagnosed with acquired immune deficiency syndrome.

History: s. 46, ch. 88-380; s. 51, ch. 2003-164.

In plain terms:

• Not limited to violent deaths. The wording lists “a homicide, suicide, or death,” and also covers a home only suspected to have been the site of one. A Florida real estate attorney can confirm how it applies to your facts.
• No legal claim for staying silent about the death itself. No cause of action arises against the owner, either side’s agent, or any Florida real estate licensee for not disclosing it.

What the statute does not change

Florida’s general disclosure rule comes from Johnson v. Davis, 480 So. 2d 625 (Fla. 1985), where the Florida Supreme Court held that “where the seller of a home knows of facts materially affecting the value of the property which are not readily observable and are not known to the buyer, the seller is under a duty to disclose them to the buyer.” Section 689.25 says the fact of a death is not a material fact that must be disclosed. It says nothing about the condition of the house.

When a death goes unnoticed for a while, or a home sits closed up afterward, families sometimes find physical problems: stained flooring or subfloor, odor held in carpet, drywall or ductwork, insects, or mold if the air conditioning was off. Those are facts about the property. If you know of one, it affects value, and a buyer wouldn’t see it on a normal look, it sits under the Johnson rule like any other hidden defect. Whether a specific condition meets that test is a question for a Florida real estate attorney.

Three more points carry over from the general rules:

• As-is doesn’t erase it. Florida Realtors’ disclosure guidance, updated February 9, 2026, says the disclosure requirement also applies to residential properties sold as is. More on that path: selling a Florida house as-is.
• The standard contract repeats it. In paragraph 10(j) of the Florida Realtors/Florida Bar AS IS contract (ASIS-7x; this sentence is unchanged in the 2026 revision), the seller states that the seller “knows of no facts materially affecting the value of the Real Property which are not readily observable and which have not been disclosed to Buyer.”
• Your agent has the same duty. Section 475.278 makes “disclosing all known facts that materially affect the value of residential real property and are not readily observable” a duty of Florida licensees, as transaction brokers or single agents. If you tell Mo about hidden damage, expect it to be disclosed.

The main Florida seller notices, including flood history, are covered on Florida seller disclosure requirements and in the flood disclosure guide.

If a buyer asks directly

Section 689.25 is worded around not disclosing a fact. It does not say a seller may answer a direct question falsely, and Florida law treats a false statement differently from silence. In Johnson v. Davis itself, the sellers told the buyers that ceiling stains were wallpaper glue and that there were “no problems with the roof.” The Florida Supreme Court agreed there had been a misrepresentation that amounted to fraud, as The Florida Bar Journal’s review of the case explains.

Agents are held to the same standard. Section 475.25(1)(b) allows discipline of a licensee who has been guilty of “fraud, misrepresentation, concealment,” among other conduct. Mo won’t give a buyer a false answer.

Before the home is listed, settle with a Florida real estate attorney how a direct question will be handled, and tell Mo what you decide. That decision belongs to you and your lawyer, not to a script from your agent.

An occupant’s health stays private

Under subsection (1)(a), an occupant’s HIV or AIDS diagnosis is not a required disclosure either. Federally, HUD states that individuals with disabilities, including HIV/AIDS, are protected from housing discrimination by the Fair Housing Act. No one’s health belongs in a listing, a showing, or a conversation with buyers.

Practical steps for the family

1. Consider a professional cleanup company.If the death left blood or other biological material behind, many families choose to hire a trauma scene cleanup company rather than do it themselves. For biomedical waste produced in a home through injury or other major traumatic conditions, the Florida Department of Health publishes home-cleanup guidelines. It also says trauma scene cleanup providers can be contacted to manage site decontamination. The department keeps a county-by-county list of these companies but does not regulate or endorse their cleanup procedures, and a listed company without a 4-digit number is not registered to transport biomedical waste.
2. Get the scope and the results in writing.Ask for a written scope, before-and-after photos, a list of materials removed and replaced, and the final invoice, so you can describe accurately what was found and fixed.
3. Control moisture in a closed-up house.The EPA says “the key to mold control is moisture control.” It recommends drying water-damaged areas within 24 to 48 hours, keeping indoor humidity below 60 percent (ideally 30 to 50 percent), and consulting its remediation guidance when there has been a lot of water damage or mold covers more than 10 square feet. In an empty Florida house, that usually means keeping the air conditioning running and having someone check on the home.
4. Fix, don’t cover.The EPA says not to paint or caulk moldy surfaces. The same thinking applies to disclosure: new paint, flooring or air freshener over a known hidden problem only makes it harder to see, which is what the Johnson rule is about.
5. Put disclosures in writing.Florida Realtors’ guidance says disclosure can be made in writing or verbally and highly recommends writing, in case a question comes up later.
6. Take the legal questions to a lawyer.Whether a condition is material, how to word a disclosure, how to answer a direct question, and who may sign are questions for a Florida real estate, probate or elder-law attorney. Tax questions go to a CPA. Pricing, preparation, marketing and showings are Mo’s part.

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