# Do you have to disclose knob and tube wiring when selling in Ohio?

> Do you have to disclose knob and tube in Ohio? What the state form asks about electrical problems and what counts as known. Read this before you list.

URL: https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/guide/knob-and-tube-disclosure-ohio/

Learn

Ohio's form doesn't name knob and tube. It asks what you know about electrical problems, and what you knew is the part that matters.

Last Updated: November 11, 2026

The short answer

Ohio's Residential Property Disclosure Form, required under Ohio Revised Code 5302.30, doesn't name knob and tube. It asks whether you know of past or current problems or defects with the electrical system, and about repairs in the past five years. If you know of K&T problems, that question reaches them; your attorney can judge the rest.

Key takeaways

- The form asks about known electrical problems or defects, not about knob and tube by name.
- It also asks about repairs to the electrical system in the past five years.
- The form reaches what you know, and an inspection report you've read is something you know.
- Whether intact K&T is a 'defect' is a legal judgment, so ask an attorney or your agent.
- Kentucky sales follow Kentucky's own process.

## What will the Ohio form ask you about your wiring?

If you’re selling most kinds of home in Ohio, you fill in the state’s Residential Property Disclosure Form under Ohio Revised Code 5302.30. So do you have to disclose knob and tube in Ohio? Section G, Mechanical Systems, asks about the electrical system directly.

At [Conflux Cincinnati Knob and Tube](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/) we assess and replace K&T for sellers and buyers across Cincinnati and Hamilton County. This guide explains the form’s electrical question. It isn’t legal advice, and an attorney should answer anything about your duty in a specific sale.

| What the form asks | What that means for you with K&T |
| --- | --- |
| “Do you know of any previous or current problems or defects with the following existing mechanical systems?” | It turns on what you know about problems, not on the wiring’s age or type |
| Electrical: Yes, No or N/A | One line covers the whole electrical system |
| A description of repairs in the past five years | K&T replacement or disconnection in that window is a repair to describe |

The Ohio Department of Commerce, Division of Real Estate, issued the form in its current shape in June 2022, under Ohio Administrative Code 1301:5-6-10.

## Does the form actually say “knob and tube”?

No. The form never uses those words. It asks about problems and defects you know of, so the real question for you is whether what you know about your wiring amounts to a problem or defect.

That depends on the facts and on the law. A few situations make the answer clearer than others:

- **Someone told you it’s a problem.** An electrician’s report, an insurer’s letter or a past buyer’s inspection naming K&T as a hazard is knowledge of a problem.
- **You know of symptoms.** Fuses that keep blowing, a warm outlet or a burning smell are problems whatever wiring causes them.
- **You know it’s there and nothing more.** Whether intact K&T by itself is a “defect” is the judgment to make with an attorney.

> When in doubt
>
> Disclosure law protects buyers from things a seller knew and didn’t say. If you’re unsure how to answer, ask your agent or a real estate attorney before you sign, and keep whatever documents you relied on.

## What counts as “knowing”?

Usually, paper. If you’ve read a report or letter that names the wiring, you know what it says, and the form’s question about known problems reaches it.

| Where it came from | What it tells you |
| --- | --- |
| A home inspection from when you bought | What the inspector saw then, and what they recommended |
| An insurer’s underwriting letter | That the carrier treats your wiring as an issue |
| An electrician’s assessment | Which circuits are live, dead or damaged |
| A buyer’s inspection during this sale | What this buyer found, which you now know |
| Your own repairs | What was replaced or disconnected, and when |

Keep these in one folder. Our [paperwork guide](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/guide/knob-and-tube-paperwork-for-insurers/) shows how the same records serve an insurer, and they serve a buyer the same way.

## How do you answer the five-year repairs question?

Briefly and in a way a buyer can check. The form asks you to describe repairs in the past five years, and K&T replacement, disconnecting old runs or a panel change in that window belongs there.

Say what was replaced, which circuits, whether any K&T remains, and the permit. Compare two versions:

- **Vague:** “Electrical updated.”
- **Checkable:** “Six K&T circuits replaced and two disconnected at both ends, IBI permit final on file; no active K&T remains.”

You can only write the second if the work and the records back it up, which is why the [removal record](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/knob-and-tube-removal/) and the permit matter.

## What will the buyer do with your answer?

Look further. Buyers rarely stop at the form. Their inspector looks in the basement and attic, and K&T usually goes in the report as a finding. From there, the buyer’s lender and insurer become part of your sale.

Clipboard, flashlight and tester on a basement workbench: what an inspector notes down here becomes what the buyer asks the seller about.

- **Insurance.** Each carrier writes its own rules; see [K&T insurance in Ohio](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/guide/knob-and-tube-homeowners-insurance-ohio/).
- **Lending.** Some lenders or appraisers attach conditions; see [K&T and mortgages](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/guide/knob-and-tube-mortgage/).
- **Price.** A scope gives both sides something to price; see [K&T before closing](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/knob-and-tube-before-closing/).

## What are your options as a seller?

Three broad paths. None of them removes the disclosure question for problems you already know about, but each changes what your buyer faces.

| Path | What it gives the buyer | What it asks of you |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Assess and disclose | A circuit list showing what’s live, dead or damaged | A visit for the free assessment and a clear answer on the form |
| Assess and offer a credit | A written scope the buyer can price | A negotiation over the number |
| Replace before listing | A house without active K&T, with records | Time, money and open walls before the sale |

Our guide on [home value](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/guide/does-replacing-knob-and-tube-increase-home-value/) covers what replacement does and doesn’t change for a sale.

## Buying? How should you read the seller’s form?

As what the seller says they knew, not what’s in the walls. A “No” on the electrical line can sit alongside live K&T, because K&T often hides behind updated outlets and a newer panel.

Read the form alongside your own inspection, and ask the seller for any records behind the five-year repairs answer:

- The IBI permit number and final for any electrical work
- Any circuit map or panel directory from an electrician
- Insurer letters about the wiring, if the seller will share them

If the records are thin, an assessment inside your inspection period fills the gap. Our [knob and tube inspection](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/knob-and-tube-inspection/) page describes what it covers, and [identifying K&T](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/guide/how-to-identify-knob-and-tube-wiring/) explains what you can safely look for yourself.

## What if the house is in Kentucky?

Then Kentucky’s rules apply, not Ohio’s. The Ohio form and Ohio Revised Code 5302.30 don’t cover a house in [Covington](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/service-areas/covington-ky/) or [Newport](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/service-areas/newport-ky/), so ask your Kentucky agent which disclosure the sale uses.

## What should you do before you fill in the form?

Find out what you have. On a [knob and tube inspection](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/knob-and-tube-inspection/) we trace each circuit and give you a written list, which makes the form easier to answer accurately and gives buyers the same facts.

To arrange one before you list, call [(513) 496-2715](tel:+15134962715). Our guide on [whether K&T is illegal in Ohio](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/guide/is-knob-and-tube-illegal-in-ohio/) covers the code side of the same question.

## Questions about this guide

### If I had the K&T disconnected years ago, what do I write?

Say what you know and what was done, in plain words, and keep the record that backs it up. If the work falls inside the form's five-year window, it belongs in the repairs description. A disconnection record with photos and a permit final lets a buyer check your statement instead of taking it on trust.

### The buyer's inspector found K&T I didn't know about. Have I done something wrong?

The form asks what you know. Wiring hidden in walls that you had no reason to know about is a different situation from a problem someone told you about. Once the report reaches you, though, you know, so talk to your agent or attorney before you answer anything further in writing.

### Should I replace knob and tube before listing?

Sometimes it's worth it; sometimes a scope and a price serve the sale better. Replacement takes the insurance and lending questions away for buyers, but it costs time and money. A written scope lets buyers price the work and can support a credit instead. Your market and your house decide.

## Related service

- [Service**K&T before closing** We trace the circuits fast and write a scope that buyers, sellers and lenders can all work from.](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/knob-and-tube-before-closing/)

## More guides

- [Decision Guide**Can you get a mortgage on a house with knob and tube wiring?** No law answers this. The appraiser, the lender and the insurer each get a say, and the insurer is often the one that decides.](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/guide/knob-and-tube-mortgage/)
- [Decision Guide**Can you get homeowners insurance with knob and tube in Ohio?** Each carrier writes its own rules. Here's what they usually want to know, and how to choose your path before a deadline chooses it for you.](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/guide/knob-and-tube-homeowners-insurance-ohio/)
- [Decision Guide**Does replacing knob and tube increase home value?** Nobody can give you a percentage. What replacement does change is who can buy, insure and finance your house, and how easily.](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/guide/does-replacing-knob-and-tube-increase-home-value/)
- [Learn**What counts as proof of knob and tube removal for an insurer?** Your underwriter can't see inside your walls. They read documents, and a few specific ones carry most of the weight.](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/guide/knob-and-tube-paperwork-for-insurers/)
- [Learn**Is knob and tube wiring illegal in Ohio?** The wiring already in your walls, any new work, and your insurance follow three different sets of rules. Here's where each one draws the line.](https://confluxcincinnatiknobandtube.com/guide/is-knob-and-tube-illegal-in-ohio/)

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