Do you disclose the JV split to the seller, or is that between partners

Ran into this twice in the last month and I still don't have a settled position.

Setup: my name goes on the purchase contract, I found the seller, my partner is bringing the buyer and taking half the assignment fee. The seller signs with me. Does the seller ever hear that there's a second wholesaler on my side who's getting paid out of the spread?

The case for saying nothing: the seller contracted with me at a price they agreed to. What I pay a partner out of my end is my business, the same way I don't tell them what I pay for skip tracing. Some sellers hear "partner" and start renegotiating, and I've watched a deal wobble for exactly that reason.

The case for saying it: in some states your disclosure obligations on an assignment are broader than people assume, and licensing triggers vary state to state, so what counts as material to the seller isn't a thing I can settle from my own market. Anyone selling into a JV should confirm their own state's rules with a licensed attorney there. Beyond the legal side, if the partner is going to be on calls, walking the property, or talking to the title company, the seller is going to figure it out anyway and finding out sideways is worse than being told.

Where I've landed operationally is that I disclose that I work with partners and that the property may be assigned, without naming numbers. But I've had two experienced guys tell me that's already more than the seller needs and I'm inviting questions I don't have to answer.

Curious what people actually do, not what the course said.