Indiana Seller Disclosure vs. Form 46021 in Lake County

What disclosure paperwork do Indiana home sellers actually have to complete?

Indiana sellers deal with two different documents that people lazily call "the disclosure form." The Seller's Residential Real Estate Sales Disclosure (IC 32-21-5) is a property-condition statement the buyer sees before an offer is accepted. The Sales Disclosure Form, State Form 46021 (IC 6-1.1-5.5), is a property-tax filing signed at closing and submitted to the county auditor. Mix them up and you risk either a condition-related dispute or a delayed deed.

By the Constellation Home Sales Team | November 3, 2026

If you're about to list a home in Lake, Porter, or La Porte County, someone will hand you a stack of forms and call one of them "the disclosure." Ask which one. The answer decides whether you're protecting yourself from a lawsuit or simply feeding information to the county auditor.

Here's how we explain it to sellers in Crown Point, Valparaiso, Munster, and Portage before they sign a listing agreement.

Document one: the Seller's Residential Real Estate Sales Disclosure

This is the condition statement. Under IC 32-21-5, you describe what you actually know about the home — foundation, roof, mechanical systems, water and sewer, and known hazards — and the form goes to the buyer before an offer is accepted.

Three things to understand about it:

- It covers what you know, not what you suspect an inspector might find. If you know the basement seeps after heavy rain, it belongs on the form. A buyer's inspection can still turn up more, and that's a separate process.

- It isn't a warranty. The form is a statement of your actual knowledge, not a promise about the home's condition. That distinction matters, so answer carefully and never guess.

- Accuracy beats optimism. Checking "no known problems" on something you've dealt with before is how a routine sale turns into a post-closing claim.

Some sellers are exempt from the condition form, for example certain court-appointed fiduciaries handling an estate. If you're selling a parent's home, read our guide to selling an inherited house through probate in Northwest Indiana (https://freedomgroupglobal.com/post/sell-inherited-house-probate-nw-indiana) and confirm your status with your attorney.

If something changes between the day you complete the form and the day you close — a new leak, a failed sump pump — tell your agent right away. Updating the paperwork is far cheaper than defending it later.

Document two: the Sales Disclosure Form (State Form 46021)

This one has nothing to do with condition. Form 46021 is a property-tax filing under IC 6-1.1-5.5. Buyer and seller both sign it, and it goes to the county auditor at closing so the sale price can feed into assessment and statistics.

Indiana has no state real estate transfer tax, so people sometimes assume this form is the Indiana version of one. It isn't. It's an administrative filing tied to the deed, and the county charges a small filing fee that varies by county. Don't rely on a number you saw online — confirm the current filing fee with your title company.

Your title company or escrow agent normally prepares and files it. That's the key difference from Illinois, where an attorney typically runs the closing. In Indiana, closings generally run through a title company, and an attorney is usually involved only for contract review if you choose to hire one.

Where sellers get tripped up

The most common mistake we see is a seller assuming one form covers both jobs. They don't. The condition form protects you and informs the buyer. Form 46021 informs the county.

Here's the order of operations we walk our clients through:

1. Before you list: Complete the condition disclosure honestly, with receipts and permits in hand for repairs you mention.

2. Before accepting an offer: Make sure the buyer has the signed disclosure in writing.

3. After inspection: Decide how to handle repair requests. Our seller playbook for inspection repair requests in Northwest Indiana (https://freedomgroupglobal.com/post/inspection-repair-requests-in-northwest-indiana-seller-playbook) covers the options.

4. At closing: Review and sign Form 46021 with your title company, and confirm the filing fee on your settlement statement.

If your home has a septic system or private well, expect those items to carry extra weight on the condition form. We break that down in our post on septic and well homes in Northwest Indiana (https://freedomgroupglobal.com/post/septic-well-home-northwest-indiana).

Budget matters too. The fee line for Form 46021 is small, yet it belongs in your net sheet along with everything else, as outlined in our look at the cost to sell a house in Northwest Indiana (https://freedomgroupglobal.com/post/cost-to-sell-a-house-in-northwest-indiana).

A real-world walkthrough: a Crown Point sale at $575,000

Picture a seller in Crown Point with a $575,000 listing and a basement that took on water twice in the past five years. Both times the sump pump handled it, and the seller hasn't thought about it since. That's still a known condition, and it belongs on the disclosure with a plain description of what happened and what was done about it.

Now picture the buyer's inspector finding efflorescence on the foundation wall. If the disclosure already mentions the water history and the pump replacement, the conversation is short. The buyer asks for a drainage evaluation, the seller shares receipts, and the deal moves on. If the disclosure said "no known problems," the buyer's agent now has a credibility argument, and the price conversation reopens.

At closing, the same seller signs Form 46021 in about a minute. Nobody argues over it, because it's a filing rather than a negotiation. That contrast is the whole point: one document carries risk and strategy, and the other carries a signature and a small county fee.

Timing: when to prepare each document

Start the condition disclosure before you take photos. Walk the house with a notebook, pull permits and repair invoices, and gather any warranties that transfer with the home. Our clients in Valparaiso and Portage who do this before listing rarely face last-minute scrambling.

Leave Form 46021 for your title company. Once you're under contract, ask them early which county auditor will receive the filing and what that county currently charges, since fees vary. If you're selling and buying in the same week, sort out the numbers for both closings at the same time. If your timeline depends on buying first, our post on whether you can buy before you sell in Northwest Indiana (https://freedomgroupglobal.com/post/buy-before-sell-northwest-indiana) lays out the options.

What this means at $500,000 and up

At higher price points, buyers bring sharper inspectors, tighter appraisals, and more questions. A condition disclosure that matches the inspection report builds trust and keeps negotiations short. One that conflicts with it gives a buyer's attorney or agent leverage to reopen price.

We've closed more than 615 transactions, and the sales that go smoothest are the ones where the seller answers the condition form candidly on day one. Nothing surprising turns up in week three, and the appraisal and inspection stay boring — exactly what you want.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I have to fill out the seller's disclosure in Indiana?

Most Indiana sellers of residential property do, under IC 32-21-5, and the buyer should receive it before an offer is accepted. Certain sellers, such as some court-appointed fiduciaries, may be exempt, so confirm your situation with your attorney.

Is Form 46021 the same as a transfer tax in Indiana?

No. Indiana has no state real estate transfer tax. Form 46021 is a property-tax filing submitted to the county auditor, and the county charges a small filing fee that varies, so confirm the current amount with your title company.

Who files the Sales Disclosure Form at closing?

Buyer and seller both sign it, and the title company or escrow agent normally prepares and files it with the county auditor. You review it at the closing table with the rest of your documents.

What if I discover a problem after completing the condition disclosure?

Tell your agent immediately. Updating the paperwork before closing is the safest path, and your attorney can advise you on how to handle it.

Do I need an attorney to sell my home in Indiana?

Indiana isn't an attorney-closing state, so a title company or escrow agent usually handles the closing. Many sellers still hire an attorney for contract review, particularly with estates, divorces, or complicated titles.

Now that you know which form protects you and which one only reaches the county, the next step is checking your own answers before a buyer sees them. Text or call 630-912-9129 and we'll walk through your condition disclosure line by line for your Lake, Porter, or La Porte County home, and we'll flag anything that could slow your closing.