Establishes the right to inspection of residential real properties, condominium units, and cooperative apartments.
This bill would create a statutory “right to inspection” for buyers of residential real property in New York, including single-family homes, condominium units, and cooperative apartments. After a seller accepts an offer, the prospective purchaser would have up to 10 days, unless extended in writing, to have the property inspected by a licensed home inspector. The bill defines inspection broadly to cover readily accessible systems and components such as heating, cooling, plumbing, electrical, structural elements, foundation, roof, masonry, and interior/exterior components, and for condos and co-ops, associated common areas.
The bill also prohibits sellers or their agents from conditioning acceptance of an offer on the buyer waiving or limiting the inspection right, except in an auction sale. It further bars sellers from accepting offers from buyers who have already stated they intend to waive the inspection right, subject to narrow exceptions for certain family transactions and some court-ordered transfers. Each offer to purchase would be required to include a statutory disclosure informing buyers of the inspection right and a limited right to revoke the offer if serious defects are found and repair costs exceed a buyer-specified threshold.
If a seller fails to comply, the bill would allow the buyer to recover damages and would impose a civil penalty of the greater of 4% of the sale price or $10,000. It also classifies violations by persons engaged in trade or commerce as unfair and deceptive acts or practices under the General Business Law, and treats violations by agents as violations of the real property law’s broker/agent provisions. The Attorney General would be authorized to enforce the section.
The bill’s impact would be to shift New York residential real estate transactions toward stronger buyer protections and more standardized inspection rights, limiting common market practices that pressure buyers to waive inspections in competitive sales. It would amend the Real Property Law’s property condition disclosure framework and create new compliance obligations for sellers, brokers, and agents, while also exposing violators to private liability, civil penalties, and possible consumer-protection enforcement.
Because there are no committee transcripts or recorded votes provided, there is no documented debate or voting pattern to gauge sentiment. Based on the bill’s structure, the measure appears generally pro-consumer and pro-buyer, with its main likely point of contention being whether restricting inspection waivers could make offers less flexible for sellers and potentially affect competitiveness in fast-moving housing markets, especially where buyers currently waive inspections to strengthen bids.
The bill would amend the Real Property Law to add a new statutory right for buyers of residential real property, condominiums, and cooperatives to obtain a home inspection after offer acceptance, and would prohibit most seller-imposed inspection waivers. It would also add mandatory offer language, create civil penalties and damages remedies for noncompliance, and tie violations to the General Business Law’s deceptive practices provisions and existing real estate agent enforcement provisions.
No committee discussion or votes are available, so there is no recorded legislative sentiment in the materials provided. On its face, the bill reflects a consumer-protection approach favoring homebuyers and transparency in residential sales, while imposing new restrictions and liabilities on sellers and agents.
The main likely point of contention is the bill’s restriction on inspection waivers, which could be viewed by sellers and real estate professionals as limiting negotiation flexibility and making it harder to compete in tight housing markets where buyers sometimes waive inspections. Supporters would likely emphasize buyer protection, disclosure, and preventing pressure to forgo inspections, while opponents may argue the bill interferes with market-driven transaction terms and could slow or complicate sales. The auction exception and narrow family-transfer exceptions suggest the bill tries to preserve some flexibility, but the waiver ban remains the central issue.