A seller believes that the fact that a previous occupant had HIV, or that a death occurred at the property, must be entered as a physical-condition defect on the Illinois Residential Real Property Disclosure Report. Is the seller correct?

Correct Answer

D) No, because Illinois law expressly excludes HIV status and the fact of a death at the property from required disclosures, and the disclosure report is limited to physical conditions and material defects.

Under the Illinois Residential Real Property Disclosure Act (765 ILCS 77) and the Illinois Human Rights Act, a seller is not required — and in fact is protected — from having to disclose that a prior occupant had HIV/AIDS or that a death occurred at the property. The disclosure report is a physical-condition instrument focused on structural, mechanical, and environmental defects. Treating stigmatized-property facts as standard physical defects would also risk violating fair housing principles by associating a protected class characteristic (disability) with property value.