Ethics 101

Allow me to pose to you, the reader, a simple question of ethics and morals. I would truly appreciate your comments and thoughts.

Suppose you own a property - an apartment community, with lots of families and seniors and young children reside. A purchaser of the property discovers that the property has both lead-based paint and asbestos. For reasons that are unimportant at this juncture [I hope to develop that part of this Blog at a later time], you end up selling your property to someone else. For whatever reason, you end up not disclosing the asbestos and lead-based paint; maybe they asked and your failed to disclose or maybe they just were not savvy enough to ask the base line questions that a purchaser [and certainly his lender] should.

Do you have a moral / ethical duty to disclose? Let's forget the issues of legal obligations at this time. If you disclose, you might not get the money you had hoped for / expected. If you simply shut your mouth and cash comes your way.

So tell me please, what should you do and what would you do? Yes, they are slightly different questions but both are of import. And while we are at it, what about those who work with / for the Seller - a different duty?

Thanks!
Mitch

{Coming on Sunday, Part II - Ethics 102}