Disclosure is possibly the single most important part of a Real Estate Transaction. In Texas, ALL Sellers are required to fill out a Sellers Disclosure which gives the potential buyer a short history of the property. Even if you are selling or buying a home For Sale By Owner, it is required.
However, there is always the chance that the seller "forgot" about something, or maybe the previous owner "forgot" something. Never Fear, Steph is here!
While searching for a home there are many tools available to help you. The one that I am going to mention here is the CLUE Report. (Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange)
This is a report that you can request for FREE from your insurance company. This is like a credit report for homes. Not only do claims filed agains insurance follow you, but they stay with the home. This list will show you any claims filed and the amount paid out for them.
This can be important in several ways. Hot Water Heater bottoms out and causes water damage. I'd want to know. Hail Damage to the roof and funds were paid out by the insurance company BUT the home still has the original roof. Uh Oh!
I always recommend getting one of these reports, sometimes before writing an offer. It is important that during your option period (inspection period) you contact the insurance company that you plan on using to get you quotes. If there has been a long line of claims on the property, you might get a surprise rate.
So, don't be CLUEless. No reason not too! It's FREE!
Stephanie Edwards-Musa 
Stephanie - this is great advise. In Florida we try to get seller's property disclosures but at the moment it is not a state requirement, so some do and some don't. The CLUE report would especially be good for buyers here because we've had so much hurricane damage in the last few years.
We also submit a Seller's Real Property Disclosure which is four pages. The CLUE report may be something to consider as well! Thanks for the info
Stephanie...
Thank you for this info. I knew of this report but never really used it, but now I can see why it should be discussed with my clients.