2.2 Maine Disclosure Requirements

The Real Estate Brokerage Relationships Form (Form #3)

Maine's central agency-disclosure document is the Real Estate Brokerage Relationships Form, known as MREC Form #3. Under Title 32, section 13279, an agency must give a prospective buyer or seller this written form when there is substantive communication about a real estate transaction - whether by face-to-face meeting, written communication, or electronic communication. 'Substantive' means discussion of a specific property or the consumer's needs, not a passing 'how much is that house?' at an open house.

Key Facts About Form #3

A frequent exam trap: the form is informational and does not by itself create a brokerage relationship. Representation begins only when a written brokerage agreement is signed. If a consumer refuses to sign the acknowledgment, the licensee should note the refusal and the date and proceed - refusal does not bar continued contact.

Customer vs. Client on the Form

Form #3 explicitly walks the consumer through becoming a client (signing a brokerage agreement for representation) or remaining a customer (no representation, basic duties only). It also explains the firm's policy on appointed agency and disclosed dual agency so the consumer can give informed consent later. Because the form is a disclosure rather than a binding promise, a consumer who receives it is not obligated to use that agency - the licensee cannot treat acknowledgment as a hiring decision.

Seller's Residential Property Disclosure Statement

Separate from the agency form, Maine law (Title 33, sections 171-178) requires the seller of residential property to deliver a Residential Property Disclosure Statement to the buyer before or upon the buyer making an offer. The licensee's job is to ensure the seller completes it and that the buyer receives it.

Required Disclosure Categories

Federal Overlay: Lead-Based Paint

For housing built before 1978, the federal Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act (Title X) applies on top of Maine rules: the seller must give the EPA/HUD 'Protect Your Family From Lead in Your Home' pamphlet, disclose known lead hazards, and allow the buyer a 10-day period to conduct a lead inspection (the parties may shorten or waive it by mutual agreement). This federal duty stacks with Maine's disclosure statement - the exam may test both in one scenario.

Who Is Responsible, and Penalties

The disclosure statement is the seller's representation, not the agent's guarantee; the agent must, however, disclose any known defect even if the seller omits it. If the seller delivers the statement after the buyer makes an offer, Maine gives the buyer a limited right to rescind within a short window after receipt. Knowingly providing false information, or omitting a known material defect, can expose the seller to civil liability and the licensee to MREC discipline including fines, license suspension, or revocation.

A practical rule for the exam: the agent's safest course is to encourage written disclosure and never paper over a known problem.

Material Facts, Stigma, and Fair Housing

What Must Be Disclosed

Licensees and sellers must disclose known material physical defects affecting the property - foundation movement, a leaking roof, recurrent basement flooding, a failed septic system, or environmental hazards like radon or an abandoned heating-oil tank. The standard is what the licensee knew or reasonably should have known; Maine does not require a licensee to discover latent defects.

What Is NOT Required (Stigmatizing Facts)

Honesty trap: even when disclosure is not affirmatively required, if a buyer asks a direct question and the licensee knows the truthful answer, the licensee must not give false information - the basic honesty duty always applies.

Fair Housing - Federal Plus Maine

The federal Fair Housing Act protects seven classes: race, color, religion, national origin, sex, familial status, and disability. The Maine Human Rights Act (Title 5, Chapter 337) adds further protected classes in housing, including sexual orientation, gender identity, ancestry, and receipt of public assistance (which covers a Section 8 housing-choice voucher).

A worked example: refusing to rent to a tenant solely because their income comes from a Section 8 voucher is generally lawful under the federal Fair Housing Act but is a violation in Maine, because the Maine Human Rights Act protects receipt of public assistance. Note the statutory label is receipt of public assistance, not the broader phrase "source of income" some other states use - on the Maine portion, choose the Maine wording.