Real Estate Law · September 9, 2026 · 7 min read
Last Thursday a seller called me from Harford County. Nice guy. Retired. Had sold his house himself six months earlier—saved the commission, felt pretty good about it. Then the buyers' attorney sent a letter.
Turns out he'd never given them the Maryland Residential Property Disclosure and Disclaimer Statement. Just forgot. The buyers had since discovered a grading issue that sent water toward the foundation during heavy rain. They wanted $18,000 to fix it, plus their legal fees, and they had leverage because Maryland law is very clear about that disclosure.
He asked if I could help him now. I gave him the name of a real estate attorney. Then I wrote this post, because I hear some version of this story three or four times a year, and it's always the same lesson: going For Sale By Owner in Maryland doesn't mean you get to skip the legal stuff. It just means you're doing all of it yourself.
When you list your home without a realtor, you're not just skipping the commission. You're taking on every disclosure obligation, every fair housing rule, and every fiduciary duty that a licensed Maryland realtor would carry. The law doesn't care whether you have a license. It cares whether you're selling residential real estate.
Here's what that looks like on the ground.
Maryland's Residential Property Disclosure and Disclaimer Statement is not optional. If you're selling a one-to-four-unit residential property and you've lived there, you must give the buyer this form before they sign a contract, or very early in the process if they make an unsolicited offer.
The form asks about structural issues, water intrusion, environmental hazards, system defects, and more. You can check "no representation" on any line if you genuinely don't know, but you cannot skip the form entirely.
If you don't provide it, the buyer can sue for damages, rescind the contract, or both. I've seen it happen in Baltimore County, Harford County, and Anne Arundel County. It's not theoretical.
You can't write "no pets, no kids" in your FSBO listing. You can't refuse to show your home to someone because of their race, religion, national origin, familial status, disability, sex, or any other protected class under federal or Maryland fair housing law.
When I host an open house, I'm trained on this. I know what I can and cannot ask. I know that "Are you pre-approved?" is fine, but "How many kids do you have?" is not, unless the buyer volunteers it.
FSBO sellers don't get that training, and I've watched listing descriptions on Zillow that would get a realtor fined or suspended. If you're selling in Prince George's County or Washington D.C., the local regulations add even more layers. The Department of Housing and Community Development in D.C. does not mess around.
A valid contract in Maryland requires offer, acceptance, consideration, and meeting of the minds. If you draft your own purchase agreement or download a template, you're practicing real estate law without a license if you modify it for someone else, and you're risking an unenforceable contract if you do it for yourself.
Most FSBO sellers use the standard Maryland Association of REALTORS® contract, which is actually designed for agent-to-agent transactions. It references things like cooperation agreements and broker compensation that don't apply to you. A buyer's agent will help their client navigate that, but if both sides are unrepresented, you're flying blind.
I once saw a Cecil County FSBO deal fall apart at closing because the seller had crossed out the home inspection contingency without the buyer's initials. The title company refused to close. The buyer walked. The seller relisted three weeks later—this time with a realtor.
Here's where it gets interesting. A buyer can still hire a realtor even if you're selling FSBO, and under the new NAR settlement rules that just went live, that buyer's agent has probably signed a written buyer agency agreement with their client before they ever called you.
That means the buyer's agent represents the buyer, not you. They owe fiduciary duties to the buyer. They will negotiate hard on price, inspection repairs, and closing costs, and you won't have anyone in your corner unless you hire your own agent mid-stream (which some sellers do once they realize how much work this is).
You can offer to pay the buyer's agent commission as part of your asking price, or you can let the buyer pay their agent. But you need to understand the math either way. If you're selling a home in Harford County for $425,000 and you're not offering buyer-agent compensation, you're likely scaring off a chunk of the buyer pool whose agents won't show your house because their client doesn't want to pay out of pocket.
Maryland also requires a Lead-Based Paint Disclosure for any home built before 1978. Federal law. Non-negotiable. You have to give the buyer an EPA-approved pamphlet, disclose any known lead hazards, and allow a 10-day inspection period.
If your home is in Baltimore City or Baltimore County, a good portion of the housing stock is pre-1978. Miss this disclosure and you're facing federal penalties, not just a civil suit from the buyer.
I've also seen FSBO sellers in Montgomery County forget to disclose HOA fees, special assessments, or pending litigation against the condo association. Maryland law requires disclosure of any material facts that affect value or desirability. "Material" is a squishy word, but when in doubt, disclose it.
I'm not here to say FSBO never works. I've seen it succeed, usually in one of three scenarios:
But if you're in a normal market—like the one we have now in Harford, Cecil, and Baltimore Counties, where inventory is finally rising but buyers are cautious at 6.71% rates—FSBO is a gamble. You're competing against professionally marketed listings, and buyers' agents will often skip over your home if the showing process is clunky or the disclosure packet is incomplete.
If you're determined to go FSBO, do it right. Get a real estate attorney to review your contract and disclosures before you go under contract. Budget $500 to $1,000 for that. It's cheaper than a lawsuit.
Use the Maryland disclosure forms, not something you found on Google. Don't try to save money by skipping the home inspection or title insurance. Don't write your own addenda.
And if a buyer's agent calls you, treat them professionally. They're doing their job. They'll ask you questions you might not like—about repairs, about why you're selling, about whether you'll come down on price. Answer honestly and keep emotion out of it.
Or call a realtor. I've had three FSBO sellers in the past year who listed with me after two months on the market themselves. We repriced, we staged, we marketed, and we closed within 30 days. Sometimes the commission pays for itself in speed and certainty.
If you're thinking about selling your home in Harford, Cecil, Baltimore, or any of the counties I serve, let's talk through your options. No pressure. I taught school for 20 years before I sold houses, so I'm going to explain the process, not push you into anything. You can reach me here or browse current listings to see what's moving in your neighborhood.
The law doesn't care whether you have a license. But it does care whether you follow the rules. And in Maryland, those rules are there for a reason.
Katrina Kirton Sherrod, REALTOR® · Samson Properties · Licensed in MD, DC, PA & DE · 443-616-9770 · Katrina@kkstherealtor.com
“A house is made of walls and beams; a home is built with love and dreams.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson (attributed)