Home sellers across Pennsylvania will soon have to tell buyers far more about a property's flood history under a law Gov. Josh Shapiro signed Oct. 22.

House Bill 1704, sponsored by state Rep. Perry Warren, D-Bucks County, requires sellers to disclose the number of times and estimated dates a property has flooded, whether it sits in a high- or moderate-risk flood zone designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), whether the buyer will need flood insurance, and whether the seller has received government assistance for flood damage or filed a flood insurance claim. The Pennsylvania State Real Estate Commission must update the property disclosure form by summer 2028, WHYY first reported.

Pennsylvania already required sellers to disclose whether a property sits in a flood zone or has past flooding problems. The new law goes further by demanding specific dates, claim histories and FEMA zone details.

Warren chairs the House Insurance Committee and represents the 31st Legislative District, which covers Lower Makefield Township, Newtown Borough, Newtown Township, Upper Makefield Township and Yardley Borough. He introduced the bill to carry out a recommendation from the state's Flood Insurance Premium Assistance Task Force, created by legislation Shapiro signed in 2024, according to a press release from Warren's office. The bill passed the House with broad bipartisan support in October 2025. Republican Rep. Dave Zimmerman of Lancaster and Berks counties worked closely with Warren on the measure.

The law carries particular weight in Bucks County. In July 2023, flash floods devastated dozens of homes near Highland Drive and Taylorsville Road in Lower Makefield. At a Sept. 10 press conference at that same intersection, Warren joined Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Michael Humphreys and state Sen. Steve Santarsiero to urge residents to obtain flood insurance, the Bucks County Courier Times reported.

Lower Makefield resident April Bollwage-Cloer, whose property was damaged in the 2023 floods when a sinkhole opened in her backyard, spoke at that event. "It turned our neighborhood into a river that collapsed part of our backyard and most of our neighbor's into the canal," she said, according to the Courier Times.

Standard homeowners insurance does not cover flood damage. Homeowners must buy separate flood policies, which can cost hundreds or thousands of dollars a year, according to WHYY. Only about 2% of insured homes in Pennsylvania carry flood coverage, WHYY reported. The Pennsylvania Insurance Department put the figure at about 1% of all Pennsylvania households.

Mark Kibbe, legislative committee chair for the Pennsylvania Association of Realtors, told WHYY that most realtors already disclose flood risk using the association's property disclosure form, which asks seven questions about flood history and insurance. The new law closes a gap. It ensures that other real estate professionals and homeowners selling without an agent provide the same information, Kibbe said.

Warren has also introduced a separate bill, HB 1705, that would require landlords to inform renters about a property's flood history, flood zone status and insurance coverage. That measure has not advanced since it was referred to a House committee in July 2025, according to WHYY.

Sellers must begin complying with the new disclosure rules by summer 2028.