Virginia Is a “Buyer Beware” State — and One Rule Changes January 1, 2027

Let me give you the honest version of this headline, because the internet is going to give you the dramatic one.

On January 1, 2027, Virginia’s residential property disclosure statute gets exactly one new paragraph. That’s it. One subdivision. Everything else in the statute is word-for-word what it is today.

But the one paragraph matters if you’re buying land, and the much bigger story is what isn’t changing.

The bigger story: Virginia is still caveat emptor

Virginia is a caveat emptor state — buyer beware. What most buyers think of as the “disclosure form” is actually § 55.1-703, and it is a disclaimer statute, not a disclosure statute. It runs nineteen paragraphs, and nearly every one begins with the same phrase: “The owner makes no representations…”

No representations about the condition of the property. About adjacent parcels. About zoning. About sewage disposal. About whether the roof leaks.

So what does a Virginia seller actually owe you? The Supreme Court of Virginia drew the line in Van Deusen v. Snead, 247 Va. 324, 441 S.E.2d 207 (1994): a seller “must not say or do anything to throw the purchaser off his guard.” Concealment by conduct — painting over the crack, propping up the sagging beam — counts as affirmative misrepresentation.

The safe way to hold it in your head: a Virginia seller may not lie, and may not hide. A Virginia seller may stay silent.

Mere silence is not actionable. That’s the whole ballgame, and it’s why your inspection in Virginia is doing work it doesn’t have to do in Maryland.

What actually changes in 2027

The 2026 session passed HB 1358 and SB 649 (2026, cc. 308 and 309), adding § 55.1-703(B)(20),

effective January 1, 2027.

The new subdivision addresses use-value assessment under § 58.1-3230 and roll-back taxes under § 58.1-3237.

Here’s why that’s real money and not a technicality. Virginia lets localities assess farm, forest, horticultural and open-space land at its use value instead of its market value — a big annual tax break. When the land converts to another use, the locality can claw back the difference for the current year

plus the five preceding years, with interest. That’s a roll-back tax, and it can land on the buyer who triggered the change of use by building a house on it.

If you are buying acreage in Fauquier, Loudoun, Culpeper or anywhere else with a land-use program, ask before you write the offer: is this parcel in land use, and who pays the roll-back?

What is not changing — and matters more

• 55.1-709 is untouched. Disclosures are delivered before ratification. If the seller delivers late, your sole remedy is termination — not damages, not a price adjustment. And that right expires at the earliest of: three days after delivery in person or electronically, five days after postmark, settlement, occupancy, your written mortgage application, or a separate written waiver.

Read that list again. Applying for your mortgage can extinguish the remedy. It expires quietly and fast.

• 55.1-704 is the rare real duty. Virginia does require affirmative disclosure when property sits in a military air installation noise zone or accident potential zone. If you’re buying near Quantico, Fort Belvoir or Oceana, that disclosure is owed to you — and you should read it before you fall in love with the house.

How Maryland differs

Across the river, Md. Real Prop. § 10-702 gives the seller a choice: a Disclosure statement describing actual condition, or a Disclaimer selling as-is. Either way, latent defects must be listed — defects the seller knows about that a buyer couldn’t reasonably discover.

That’s a meaningfully lower wall than Virginia’s. Same metro area, different legal posture, and buyers cross that line without noticing.

What to do

Inspect harder in Virginia than you think you need to. Get the sewage, water and structural inspections even when the seller says everything’s fine — especially when the seller says everything’s fine, because saying so is one of the few things that can create liability.

Ask about land use on any parcel with acreage. Watch the § 55.1-709 clock. And don’t let “buyer beware” scare you off Virginia — it just means the diligence is on your side of the table.

This is general information about Virginia and Maryland real estate law, not legal advice. Statutory citations are to the Code of Virginia and Maryland Real Property Article as of September 2026. Consult a licensed Virginia attorney about your specific transaction.

Reginald Butler Jr. — Broker/Owner, CENTURY 21 ENVISION 1318 Crain Hwy, Bowie, MD 20716