Failure To Disclose

Location: San Diego California

Bought a home in San Diego in May 2025. In June of this year, the city contacted me about an open code enforcement case from 2017. Violations include unpermitted garage conversion, a fence encroaching into the public right-of-way, and a parking violation. None of this was disclosed.

The seller was a flipper. Bought the property for $675k and sold it to me for $995k about 5-6 weeks later.

The code case was opened under the previous owner, not the flipper. So worst case, the flipper says “I didn’t know.”

The seller’s own agent even noted “unsure of garage permits” in the visual inspection disclosure. They also replaced the flooring in the garage. No permits were pulled (or required) on any of the work they did.

A basic permit check with the city would have turned up the open case immediately. But I am just not sure if flippers are held to a higher standard or if it could be argued that they should have reasonably known.

In California, does a seller (especially one operating as a flipper/investor) have a duty to investigate and disclose things like open code cases and unpermitted work? Or can they just claim ignorance and pass the problem along?

I have a title insurance claim in progress separately. Trying to figure out if there’s an independent claim against the seller worth pursuing before I spend the time on a consult. Even if title does cover, it will still be a large deductible and most likely won’t cover the money needed to bring all violations into compliance.