Property Disclosures and Environmental Hazards on the Real Estate Exam: Lead Paint, Radon, Flood Zones and Superfund

What the outlines cover

As checked on October 28, 2026, Pearson VUE's national salesperson outline gives Property Disclosures and Environmental Issues 9 of 80 items (5 knowledge, 3 application, 1 analysis):

• Property conditions and environmental issues (5 items): lead-based paint; asbestos, radon and mold; groundwater contamination and underground storage tanks; waste disposal sites and brownfields; flood plains, flood zones and flood insurance; the Clean Air and Water Acts; and EPA programs including CERCLA, SARA, Phase I and II environmental site assessments and wetlands protection.
• Environmental and property disclosure obligations and liability (4 items).

PSI's Property Disclosures area, 7% of the salesperson exam, covers the seller's property condition disclosure, conditions that warrant an inspection or survey, red flags about land use controls, "environmental issues requiring disclosure," federal, state and local disclosure requirements, and material facts and defects. PSI doesn't name the hazards one by one, so a PSI candidate should still learn the list above.

The lead-based paint rule, step by step

This is the most detailed federal disclosure rule in this area. EPA's rule at 40 CFR Part 745, Subpart F, applies to the sale or lease of "target housing": housing built before 1978, except housing for the elderly or people with disabilities and 0-bedroom units, unless a child under 6 lives or is expected to live there.

The rule doesn't apply to foreclosure sales, leases of housing certified lead-free, leases of 100 days or less with no renewal possible, and some lease renewals. It is a disclosure rule, not a testing rule: EPA notes that landlords and property managers aren't required by it to get an inspection.

Agents have their own duty. Each agent must tell the seller or landlord of their obligations and ensure compliance. An agent who has informed the seller isn't liable for lead hazards the seller knew about but didn't disclose to the agent. Anyone who knowingly violates the rule can be liable to the buyer or renter for three times the damages.

Other hazards the outline names

Flood zones and flood insurance

FEMA's Flood Insurance Rate Maps show Special Flood Hazard Areas, the land expected to be flooded by the flood with a 1% chance of happening in any year, also called the base flood or 100-year flood. Zones beginning with A or V are Special Flood Hazard Areas; shaded X (or B) zones have a moderate flood hazard and unshaded X (or C) zones a minimal one.

FEMA says homes in high-risk flood areas with government-backed mortgages are required to have flood insurance, that most homeowners insurance doesn't cover flood damage, and that a new National Flood Insurance Program policy typically takes effect after a 30-day waiting period. The exceptions are coverage that is mandated, such as for a mortgage, and purchases related to a community flood map change.

CERCLA, Superfund and environmental site assessments

The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, enacted December 11, 1980 and known as Superfund, gave the federal government broad authority to respond to releases of hazardous substances, made responsible parties liable, and created a trust fund for cleanups when no responsible party can be found. The Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA) amended it on October 17, 1986.

For buyers and their agents, the key point is liability. EPA explains that under CERCLA, people may be held strictly liable for cleaning up hazardous substances at property they own or operate, or owned or operated in the past, "based solely on property ownership." The 2002 Brownfields Amendments added protections for innocent landowners, contiguous property owners and bona fide prospective purchasers who meet the statute's conditions, including "all appropriate inquiries" into the property's past uses before buying. A Phase I environmental site assessment done under the ASTM E1527-21 standard satisfies those inquiries, and it must be done or updated within one year before acquisition, with some parts within 180 days.

To practice the hazard list in exam-style questions, 70 disclosure and environmental questions planned for launch are planned for this area.

Seller disclosure laws are state law

Federal law covers lead paint. The general seller's property condition disclosure comes from state law, and states differ on the form, the timing and what the buyer can do. Two examples, as checked on October 28, 2026:

Washington's form changes on January 1, 2027. Its Environmental section adds a question: "Does the property include a family burial ground, mausoleum, or columbarium?" Because it sits in that section, a "yes" answer is one a buyer can't waive. State portions also add their own items. New Hampshire's state outline, for example, cites rules on disclosing the private water supply, insulation and sewage disposal system. Learn your state's version for the state portion.

The duty to disclose known material facts also comes from agency law, covered in the contracts and agency guide. For the terms and numbers in this area, 63 disclosures flashcards planned for launch are planned for quick review.

A Passy practice item on lead-based paint

A seller lists a house built in 1965. A buyer's offer is about to be signed. The seller says she has no reports and doesn't know of any lead paint. What does the federal rule still require before the buyer is obligated?

• A. The pamphlet, warning statement and a 10-day inspection opportunity
• B. Nothing, because the seller has no knowledge or reports
• C. A lead inspection paid for by the seller before closing
• D. Only the pamphlet, because the buyer can waive the rest

Answer: A. The house is target housing, so the pamphlet, the Lead Warning Statement with the seller's statement of no knowledge, and the 10-day opportunity apply whether or not the seller knows of lead. B confuses "no knowledge" with "no duty." C goes beyond the rule, which requires disclosure, not testing. D overstates the waiver: the buyer may waive the inspection opportunity, not the pamphlet or the disclosures.

Studying this area efficiently

1. Memorize the numbers: 1978, 10 days, 3 years, 4 pCi/L, 1% annual chance, 30 days.
2. Know who owes what: the seller or landlord discloses, the agent ensures compliance, and the buyer may waive only the inspection.
3. Separate federal from state. Lead paint is federal; the general disclosure statement is your state's.

If a hazard term doesn't stick, AI Rescue's planned simpler-terms explanations restate the idea under each answer. The vendor comparison shows which hazards each outline names, and the free practice questions include a lead-based paint disclosure item.