Who's Accountable for Incorrect MLS Data?

Question

About a year ago, we bought a property in the Kansas City, Missouri area.

The MLS listing stated the property was 1,700 square feet.

However, someone alerted us to a potential error, suggesting the square footage might be smaller. We had someone measure it, and they found it to be 1,350 square feet.

Even if the measurement was a bit off and the actual square footage is 1,400 square feet, that still means the house is 300 square feet less than what was listed.

So, who bears responsibility for this mistake?

Is it the seller?

The seller's agent?

My agent?

Or perhaps the county?

This discrepancy is frustrating, especially considering the significant difference between the MLS listing and the actual property size.

No appraisal was conducted on the house that could have caught this discrepancy.

Mike Dymski · Answer

The buyer.  We measure and/or inspect...and a quick walk through would identify that level of discrepancy.

JD Martin · Answer

Yup. Buyer to confirm all information is common standard. If you bought 300 sf less than you thought you were buying, the only practical thing that changed is that you paid more per SF than perhaps the property was worth on the market. If you're not local, you should always have someone check that stuff out. If you are local, 300 missing SF on a house that size should have been obvious. That is essentially two full rooms.

Bill B. · Answer

99% chance the listing said “buyer to confirm all information listed…”

IRL:you have what you saw when you bought it. It doesn’t appear to have affected you in the last year. Sounds like the least bad problem you could have.

Andrew Syrios · Answer

Usually it says something like "buyer to verify all information" or some other weasely term. TBH, they probably just got the data from county records which are often a bit off. So afraid it's on the buyer from my understanding

Bjorn Ahlblad · Answer

If you need something to be relied upon you better check it yourself. Whether dimensions or financial data. All the best!

Scott Schnabel · Answer

Standard MLS disclaimer in my market

Information is Believed To Be Accurate But Not Guaranteed Listing information is derived from various sources, including public records, which may not be accurate. Consumers should rely upon their own investigation and inspections.

Steve K. · Answer

“All information deemed accurate and reliable but buyer and buyers agent to verify”.

When I bought my first house, the listing agent had measured and got one measurement that they used in the MLS, then my buyers agent measured and got different measurements, then the appraiser measured and got different measurements from both the previous ones. Everybody measures a little differently.

Now the real estate commission here has instructed agents NOT to measure, but to just use the best source of info that we have available like public records and fill out the square footage disclosure stating where we got the square footage info from. Many also use the above language in the listing making it clear that it’s on the buyer and their agent to verify any and all info in the listing. This is a caveat emptor state (buyer beware), your state may be different.

If you can definitively prove that the seller intended to deceive you about the square footage for their personal gain, you may be able to take legal action, but probably low chance of success considering you had ample opportunity to measure the home or get an appraisal with measurements prior to closing, and had your chance to negotiate the price based on square footage and all other factors prior to closing.

Bottom line is there is no single standard method of determining square footage, so you’ll find that whenever several different people measure, you’ll get different measurements. That makes it hard to prove whether square footage was intentionally misrepresented or not. Plus they probably had a disclaimer similar to above in the listing, and probably also a square footage disclosure that you signed during the transaction. Our MLS also has this disclaimer right under the square footage info: "Note: All room dimensions, including square footage data, are approximate and must be verified by the buyer". YMMV. Good luck!

Russell Brazil · Answer

You as the buyer bare the responsibility.

In MLS systems that use the Core Logic Matrix system, which is about 50% of MLS systems nationwide, square footage is pulled directly from the governments tax records.

Additionally, there is no standard way to measure square footage. (A few states do actually by state law create a standard for that state). If you measure length times width of the outside of the property, you will get a different number than measuring the interior, because of the space the walls take up. Some people may include closet space, others do not. Some dont include bathrooms. Some may not include below grade square footage.

Who's Accountable for Incorrect MLS Data?

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