Massachusetts High Court To Weigh In On Important Realtor MLS Disclosure Case

by Rich Vetstein on April 26, 2012

in Commercial Real Estate, Disclosures, Massachusetts Real Estate Law, Realtors, Zoning


Realtor Held Liable For Erroneous MLS Information

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has agreed to hear the case of DeWolfe v. Hingham Centre Ltd. which will consider two very important issues for the real estate community, especially agents. The first issue is the scope of a real estate agent’s duty to disclose and independently verify property information posted on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). The second issue is whether the exculpatory clause found in the Greater Boston Real Estate Board’s standard form purchase and sale agreement legally prohibits a buyer’s misrepresentation claim against the real estate agent.

The case was originally decided by the Appeals Court, and I wrote a full post about it here. The original opinion can be read here.

In summary, the real estate agent, relying on what turned out to be erroneous information supplied by his client, listed a Norwell property on Multiple Listing Service (MLS) and newspaper advertising as “zoned Business B.” The property was not, in fact, zoned for business use; it was zoned residential, thereby prohibiting the hair salon the buyer wanted to open at the property. Despite the general disclaimer on the MLS system and in the purchase and sale agreement, the Appeals Court held that the Realtor could be held liable for misrepresentation and Chapter 93A violations due to providing this erroneous information.

This will be a very important case for the real estate brokerage industry, and we will be monitoring it. Oral arguments are expected to be held in late summer or early fall, with a final ruling coming a few months thereafter.

In the meantime, my advice remains the same:

  • Do not make any representations concerning zoning. Advise the buyer to go to the town/city planner or hire an attorney for a zoning opinion.
  • Never trust your client. I hate to say this, but when it comes to disclosures, it’s true.
  • Always independently verify information about the property from available public sources. Here, the agent could have simply gone down to the town planning office to verify whether the property was zoned commercial or residential. (The buyer or his attorney could have done so as well—this was a complete failure on all sides).
  • When it comes to zoning, which can be complex and variable, think twice before making blanket statements. Better to be 100% sure before going on record about whether certain uses are permissible. You can always get a zoning opinion from a local attorney.

*Hat tip to a new real estate blog on the scene, Disgruntled Neighbors by Attorney Andrew Goldstein, for bringing this to my attention.

~Rich

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