Real Estate Professionals E&O Insurance in Texas

Texas at a glance

Regulator

Texas Real Estate Commission

Licenses brokers, sales agents, and inspectors under the Texas Occupations Code.

Disclosure statute

Texas Property Code Section 5.008 Seller's Disclosure Notice

Covers dozens of specific defect and history items, including flood disclosure.

Dual representation

Intermediary brokerage with appointed license holders

Requires written consent distinguishing it from undisclosed dual agency.

Growth-market overlay

Municipal utility district tax disclosure in exurban master-planned communities

A distinct exposure in fast-growing Austin, DFW, and San Antonio-area developments.

Texas Property Code Seller's Disclosure Notice

Texas Property Code Section 5.008 requires sellers of most residential property to complete a detailed disclosure notice covering known defects across dozens of specific items, from structural conditions to prior flooding, and to deliver it to the buyer before the contract is executed in many transactions. Claims against Texas licensees frequently allege the agent should have caught a contradiction between what a seller disclosed on this notice and observable conditions during showings, particularly around prior flood history that carries its own line item on the form.

Intermediary and appointed-license-holder practice

Texas allows a brokerage to act as an intermediary between a buyer and seller, appointing separate license holders within the same firm to advise each party rather than having one agent represent both directly. Disputes commonly arise over whether the intermediary status and appointed-license-holder structure were disclosed and consented to in writing at the required point in the transaction, since Texas courts and TREC treat undisclosed dual representation as a serious violation distinct from a properly structured intermediary arrangement.

Flood history disclosure after Hurricane Harvey reforms

Following widespread flooding from Hurricane Harvey, Texas expanded the Seller’s Disclosure Notice to require more specific flood-history reporting, including whether the property is in a floodplain, has flooded previously, or has received flood-insurance claims. Agents in Houston, the Gulf Coast, and other flood-prone Texas markets face distinct exposure if they fail to prompt sellers toward complete flood-history answers or fail to advise buyers to independently verify floodplain status through FEMA maps.

Rapid exurban growth and new-construction representation

Fast-growing exurban areas around Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth, and San Antonio generate heavy new-construction and builder-representation activity, where agents often navigate builder incentive structures, HOA transition documents, and municipal utility district (MUD) tax disclosures unique to master-planned developments. A buyer’s claim that MUD tax obligations or HOA transition terms were not adequately explained is a distinctly Texas exurban-growth exposure not typically present in established, built-out metro neighborhoods.

Who we write this for in Texas

Real estate E&O FAQs for Texas