Terminating After Reviewing the Seller’s Property Disclosure: Which OREF Form to Use?

Q: After reviewing a completed OREF 020 – Seller’s Property Disclosure Statement, a buyer I am representing in a purchase has decided to terminate the transaction. I have thoroughly reviewed OREF 064 – Buyer’s Notice of Unconditional Disapproval, and I can’t find an option for disapproval based on the buyer’s review of the property disclosure. Since there is no option to add other notices, should I add the disapproval of the property disclosure to OREF 109 – Notice from Buyer to Seller under the blank option for other notices available on this form? Or is there a better way to go about this?

A: ORS 105.475 provides that the buyer may revoke their offer within 5 business days of the seller’s delivery of the Seller’s Property Disclosure Statement by “delivering to the seller a separate signed written statement of revocation disapproving the seller’s disclosure.” The revocation statement is not effective unless (1) it is separate, (2) the revocation period has not expired, and (3) the buyer has not waived the right to revoke.

To properly document the representations regarding the conditions necessary for a proper revocation and meet the requirements of ORS 105.475(1), OREF created OREF 056 – Buyer’s Notice to Seller of Revocation and Demand for Refund. Accordingly, this form creates a notice from the buyer to the seller of their decision to revoke, voids the buyer’s offer, and makes a demand to escrow for a refund of the buyer’s earnest money deposit, all without the seller’s signature. OREF 056 – Buyer’s Notice to Seller of Revocation and Demand for Refund was created specifically for this purpose and is the appropriate form to use.

OREF 064 – Notice of Buyer’s Unconditional Disapproval is intended for situations where a buyer unconditionally disapproves of a contingency within the sale agreement. Because that scenario differs from a statutory revocation of the offer under ORS 105.475, OREF 064 – Notice of Buyer’s Unconditional Disapproval would not be appropriate here.

Content updated 1/24/2025 from original content

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