Do You Have to Disclose Foundation Repair When Selling a House in Texas?

Published: Aug 31, 2026

Yes! You have to disclose it even if the repair was done properly, permanently, and years ago. This trips up a lot of Amarillo sellers, and for an understandable reason. The general rule in Texas is that once you've repaired something, it's no longer a defect and you don't have to disclose it. Foundation repair is one of a short list of specific exceptions to that rule. Here's how it actually works:

 

What does Texas law require?

Texas Property Code § 5.008 requires the seller of residential real property of not more than one dwelling unit to give the buyer a Seller's Disclosure Notice or one substantially similar. In practice that's the TREC form (OP-H) or the Texas REALTORS® version (TXR-1406), and it's used in nearly every residential sale in the state. The notice is a disclosure of your knowledge of the property's condition as of the date you sign it. It is not a warranty, and it doesn't replace the buyer's inspection. But it is a sworn statement about what you know.

A handful of transfers are exempt from the notice requirement — foreclosures, some transfers between co-owners, transfers from an estate, and court-ordered transfers, among others. If you inherited the home or are selling from an estate, confirm your situation with your agent or attorney rather than assuming.

 

If the repair is finished, why does it still have to be disclosed?

The form specifically requires that it be disclosed. Alongside general condition questions, the disclosure notice asks about a short list of previous items that must be reported even when fully repaired:

• Previous foundation repair
• Previous structural repair
• Previous fires
• Previous flooding
• Previous termite treatment and repairs

Everything else follows the ordinary logic: fixed means no longer defective. These five don't. They're the conditions Texas decided a buyer has a right to know about regardless of how well they were addressed.

 

What counts as "structural" repair?

Broader than most sellers assume, structural repair covers work performed on the load-bearing portions of the residence:  the foundation, load-bearing walls, and the roof structure. For an Amarillo home, that means pier installation, slab leveling, pier-and-beam beam or girder replacement, and similar stabilization work all fall squarely inside the disclosure requirement. Cosmetic crack sealing that didn't touch anything load-bearing generally doesn't — but if you're unsure which category your work fell into, err on the side of caustion and disclose. Over-disclosure has never cost a seller a lawsuit.
 

What should you actually write on the form?

"Yes" is the legal minimum. It is also the answer most likely to spook a buyer, because it tells them a problem existed and nothing about whether it was solved. Give them the full picture instead:

• The date of the repair
• The company that performed it
• What was done — number and type of piers, areas lifted, drainage corrections
• Whether a transferable warranty exists, and its terms

Then attach the paperwork: the invoice, the itemized scope of work, the warranty document, and any structural engineer's report or post-repair elevation survey. A seller who hands over a documented repair file is in a completely different negotiating position than one who checks a box.

 

Does a transferable warranty help?

Substantially. A transferable warranty is what turns a disclosure from a liability into an asset. It's documentary proof that the problem was professionally addressed and that the fix is still backed — which is exactly the reassurance a nervous buyer needs.
 

Two practical notes. First, transfer is rarely automatic: most warranties require you to notify the company and complete a transfer, often within a limited window around closing and sometimes for a modest fee. Start that process when you list, not the week of closing. Second, confirm in writing what actually transfers — some warranties cover the piers indefinitely but exclude areas that were never piered.
 

In competitive Texas markets, a repaired foundation with an engineer's certification and a live transferable warranty is often the most reassuring condition a buyer can find, short of no history at all.

 

Can you just sell "as-is"?

An as-is clause does not cure a failure to disclose a known defect. Selling "as-is" means the buyer accepts the property's current condition — it does not license the seller to conceal what they know. Texas courts have consistently held sellers responsible for undisclosed known conditions regardless of "as-is" language.

 

What happens if you don't disclose?

More than most sellers realize, and the clock is friendlier to buyers than you'd expect. Buyers can bring claims under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, which carries a two-year limitations period, and for fraud, which carries four years. Critically, both run from when the buyer discovered — or reasonably should have discovered — the problem, not from the closing date. A foundation issue that resurfaces three years after closing can still be actionable.
 

Available remedies include actual damages and attorney's fees, and under the DTPA, up to treble damages where the conduct was knowing or intentional. Set against the cost of writing four honest lines on a form, the risk is badly asymmetric.
 

Disclaimer: We're a foundation repair company, not attorneys — this is general information, not legal advice. For a specific transaction, talk to your real estate agent or a Texas real estate attorney.

 

Will disclosing hurt my sale price?

Less than the alternative. A documented, warrantied repair reads as a solved problem. An undisclosed repair discovered by the buyer's inspector reads as a seller hiding something — and at that point you're renegotiating from a position of lost trust, if the deal survives at all. Given how common foundation work is on Panhandle clay, most Amarillo buyers aren't shocked by a repair history. What they react to is uncertainty.

 

Selling an Amarillo home with foundation history?

If you had work done and can't find the paperwork, or you're not certain what was actually repaired, we can inspect the property, document its current condition in writing, and tell you what the repair scope appears to have been. That report is useful to your agent, your buyer, and your buyer's lender.

If you're seeing new movement before listing, it's far cheaper to address it now than to renegotiate it after the buyer does their inspection.

 

Call us at (806) 459-3459 or use the contact form below for a free foundation inspection

anywhere in Amarillo and the Texas Panhandle.