Real Estate post selling issue.

[MoneyGal]

Pretty much. People can lie. But still, there's the law; for what it is worth.

[sags]

Leaky basements usually leave telltale marks on unfinished walls.....or on the bottom of drywall or panelling. Carpets and underlay also have telltale signs.

It wouldn't be that difficult to tell if the homeowner was aware of the leaking or not.

[MoneyGal]

This is the "patent defect" argument...if evidence of a leaky basement is readily found (or could have been readily found), and the buyer did not get an inspection or do their own inspection, they are SOL. If it is a "latent defect" (not readily detectable), that's when you need to prove the seller knew about the defect in order to have a claim.

[Berubeland]

For instance if you hired a contractor to replace the moldy drywall before selling. That is a good example.

[kcowan]

I bought a house in London and we had some flooring replaced because it had water damage. In the spring, we discovered that wind had created an ice berm that directed runoff water against the fireplace wall. I would just chip an exit in the ice berm for the water to escape and never had a problem.

Officially this was a latent problem but we never had a problem as long as we just chopped through the ice once each spring.