TL;DR
- For a previously occupied single-family residence, start with TREC’s current Seller’s Disclosure Notice, Form 55-1, subject to applicable statutory exemptions. TREC says it is to be used with a real-property sale contract entered on or after September 1, 2023. Official form.
- The ordinary notice addresses material facts and the property’s physical condition. It is separate from the water-rights disclosure; an exemption from one does not establish an exemption from the other. TREC’s explanation.
- Prepare the ordinary notice before listing as a practical planning step. When reviewing an offer, separately check the applicable contract’s water-rights provision; take transaction-specific applicability questions to a private attorney.
If you are preparing to sell a previously occupied single-family home in the Austin area, identifying the ordinary seller’s notice early gives you time to work through the property-condition information before an offer arrives. The important limit: completing that notice does not settle every disclosure question in the eventual contract.
Identify the current ordinary Seller’s Disclosure Notice
The Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC) identifies its current Seller’s Disclosure Notice as Form 55-1, effective May 28, 2026. TREC describes it as containing the information required by Texas Property Code Section 5.008 about material facts and the property’s physical condition. Its form page says the notice is required for sellers of previously occupied single-family residences and is to be used with a real-property sale contract entered on or after September 1, 2023. Whether a statutory exemption applies to an individual sale is a separate question. See TREC’s form description and current download.
Use that official page to identify the form before starting your paperwork. If you believe your sale is exempt, have a private attorney resolve that question rather than treating the property type alone as a complete answer. Preparing before listing is the planning recommendation here, not a statement of a legal delivery deadline.
An Austin-area example: preparing the notice does not finish the contract check
Hypothetical example: An Austin-area owner plans to list a previously occupied single-family residence. The owner prepares the current Form 55-1 for the ordinary property-condition disclosure, subject to any applicable statutory exception. A buyer later submits an offer using the TREC One to Four Family Residential Contract (Resale).
At that point, the owner separately reviews the contract’s Paragraph 7 water-rights provision. TREC says that when parties use a TREC contract other than the Residential Condominium Contract (Resale), the water-rights disclosure is provided by default unless all applicable Paragraph 7I(3) statements—or corresponding statements in another TREC contract—are true. Those listed statements, not the completion of Form 55-1, determine whether that contractual exception applies. TREC water-rights FAQ.
Suppose instead that the owner has established an exemption from the ordinary notice. The water-rights check still remains. TREC explains that the ordinary notice’s exemptions come from Section 5.008, while the water disclosure’s exceptions come from the TREC contract. The result can be neither disclosure, both disclosures, or only one being required. This example does not determine which result applies to a particular sale. TREC’s distinction between the requirements.
The benefit of preparing early is having the ordinary property-condition paperwork underway before negotiating an offer. The remaining work is contract-specific: you still need to check the actual offer’s disclosure language. Waiting until an offer arrives combines those tasks at the same time; preparing early separates them without assuming the later answer.
What to do before listing and when an offer arrives
This is a statewide Texas disclosure issue relevant to Austin-area sellers. The distinction comes from Texas law and TREC contract language, not a separate Austin or county rule.
- Before listing: Identify the current Form 55-1 on TREC’s official page and work through the ordinary notice, subject to any applicable statutory exemption. Keep unanswered applicability questions visible so they can be resolved before you treat the paperwork as complete.
- When reviewing an offer: Identify the contract form and read its Paragraph 7 water-rights provision if a TREC contract is used. For TREC contracts other than the Residential Condominium Contract (Resale), apply the default-and-exception rule above: all applicable listed statements must be true for that exception.
- If you believe an exception applies: Identify which disclosure it concerns and the statute or contract language supporting it. A private attorney should answer transaction-specific questions; a conclusion about the ordinary notice alone does not answer the water-disclosure question.
For the separate contract issue, see Selling a Texas Home? Check the Separate Water-Rights Disclosure. For broader listing preparation, use the Austin Seller Strategy Checklist for a Smarter Sale.
Frequently asked questions
Does the May 28, 2026 effective date mean the disclosure requirement began then?
No. That is the effective date TREC lists for Form 55-1. The same page describes its use with a real-property sale contract entered on or after September 1, 2023. Those dates describe different things; the 2026 form date should not be read as the beginning of all seller-disclosure obligations. TREC form page.
Can a condominium seller use this article to decide that no water-rights disclosure is needed?
No. TREC excludes the Residential Condominium Contract (Resale) from the default rule discussed here. That exclusion is not a determination of every obligation in a condominium transaction. Review the actual contract and take the transaction-specific question to a private attorney. This article’s ordinary-notice example concerns a previously occupied single-family residence. TREC water-rights FAQ.
Sources
- Texas Real Estate Commission: Seller’s Disclosure Notice, Form 55-1, listed effective May 28, 2026.
- Texas Real Estate Commission: FAQs: Seller’s Disclosure About Groundwater and Surface Water Rights.
Preparing to list an Austin-area home? Contact Vladimir Baibus · ATXCasa at LPT Realty for help organizing your listing preparation, including the ordinary seller’s notice and the separate disclosure questions to flag when reviewing offers. A private attorney can resolve legal applicability questions for your sale.