Affidavit of Disclosure

Buy a raw parcel out in unincorporated county land and you should receive a specific document before closing. It is the affidavit of disclosure, and A.R.S. 33-422 makes it mandatory for "a seller of five or fewer parcels of land, other than subdivided land, in an unincorporated area of a county." Subdivided lots are covered by other rules. This form exists for the parcels that fall outside them.

Two deadlines matter. The seller must furnish the affidavit "at least seven days before the transfer of the property." After you receive it, you get a right to rescind "for a period of five days." That is a short window, so read the form the day it arrives rather than the day before closing.

What makes this worth your attention is the content. The affidavit asks the seller to state the things that quietly decide whether a lot is buildable at all. Is there legal access, or does reaching the parcel mean crossing someone else's land? Are the roads publicly maintained, or will you be grading them yourself? Is there a water supply, and what kind? How will sewage be handled? Are utilities actually at the property, or merely nearby?

Those answers change a budget enormously. A parcel with no legal access needs an easement negotiated before anything else happens. A parcel with no water needs a well, a hauled-water arrangement, or both.

The affidavit is a seller disclosure, not a government certification. Nobody inspects the lot to confirm the answers. Treat it as the starting point for your own diligence rather than the end of it, and verify the access, water, and utility claims independently before the five day window closes.