A buyer interested in purchasing a property is refusing to sign the seller’s disclosure notice. Can the buyer do that?

The signature of a buyer on any seller's disclosure notice only acknowledges receipt of that notice by the buyer. The seller's disclosure notice is just that: a notice. It is not a contract and should not be listed as an addendum to the contract.

While there is no statutory mandate that buyers sign the notice, buyers should cooperate by signing the receipt portion of the notice when they receive the notice. Such a signature could be helpful should a question later arise concerning whether the buyer received this notice or another seller's disclosure notice provided by a seller containing different information.

If a buyer refuses to sign the receipt for the notice, the broker could note on a copy of the notice the date that the notice was provided to the buyer and that the buyer would not sign the receipt. That noted copy could be retained in the broker's file as evidence of compliance by the broker in furnishing a copy of the notice to the buyer.