Sandra is selling her home in Edison, New Jersey. She knows that a dry-cleaning business operated on the adjacent lot for 20 years and that the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection has listed that site as a known contaminated area under the Industrial Site Recovery Act (ISRA). Sandra believes the contamination has not spread to her property. How should Sandra handle this information on the New Jersey Property Condition Disclosure Statement?
Correct Answer
A) Sandra should disclose the known nearby contaminated site because it is a material environmental condition that could affect her property's value and desirability.
The New Jersey Residential Property Condition Disclosure Act (N.J.S.A. 46:3C-1 et seq.) and the broader duty to disclose material facts require sellers to disclose known environmental conditions that could materially affect the property's value or desirability, including known contamination on adjacent or nearby properties. A NJDEP-listed contaminated site immediately adjacent to the subject property is a material environmental fact that a reasonable buyer would want to know, regardless of whether the contamination has officially migrated onto Sandra's lot. Failure to disclose could also expose Sandra to liability under the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act (N.J.S.A. 56:8-1 et seq.).
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