Lead Home Inspection

My wife and I want to do a lead inspection on a house that was built in 1961. The house we are interested in is located in a state that does not require lead inspections. We suspect that a house may have lead in it, however the sellers deny knowledge of a house having lead paint. For some reason, the broker is trying to convince us to get test kits. The sellers were owners of the house since the 70's and never had the house inspected for lead. We are considering backing out of our contract. Should we proceed with lead inspection or back out of the contract with concern that my children may be poisoned in a house built before 1978. This particular state has had problems with lead poisoning.

As first time home buyers, we were not aware of these potential problems until after we signed the contract. ( broker is a dual disclosed agent ). Any opinions would be appreciated? I may consult with an attorney if necessary. I am very worried about the effects of child lead poisoning.

 

How much are the test kits?

Abner

 

They can range anywhere from 10 to 20 bucks for a pack of swabs. They have been proven to be unreliable. My agent recommended these kits.

http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml08/08038.html

 

Get something like this:

http://www.apshomeinspection.com/Rates.html

As a buyer, the ball is in your court. It is kind of odd that the broker wants to push those little swab kits on you. For around $275.00, you can get a professional to do it. The realtor should be willing to throw into the deal. If not, tell him you are moving on. If there is nothing to hide, they will do it.


Abner

 

Well, the ball is in your court as a buyer. Tell the broker you want a lead inspection service to do a test. Here is an example of one:

http://www.aaaleadinspection.com/prices.php

Abner

P.S. My post above this one showed a general home inspection. This is an example of a lead inspection, the prices are very similar. I am sure there are some in your area as well. Sorry for the duplication.

 

Thanks for the advice, we found a lead inspector and plan to have the home inspected on Monday. I wish it didn't have to be that way, but it is for the safety of my family. My hunch is that the seller's agent ( who is a dual disclosure agent serving as my buyers agent ) is not looking forward to this lead inspection since the sellers will have to disclose that the house does have lead. She claims to be ignorant as to the locations of lead inspectors. Two buyers have already backed out for some reason and we are getting vague answers. Of course, lead disclosure affects the listing price and slows down business. Since the sellers claim no knowledge of lead paint and did not have the house inspected for lead, this may actually be to their health benefit and correctly inform prospective buyers. Who knows, the house may turn out fine, but we're doing the test anyhow.

It may cost us a couple of hundred bucks, but at least we are getting hands on training in real estate. For property virgins, this could prove valuable for future transactions.

 

It may cost us a couple of hundred bucks, but at least we are getting hands on training in real estate. For property virgins, this could prove valuable for future transactions. [/QUOTE]

>>

I hope part of your hands-on training sees the trouble with dual agency.
One of my longest friends is a shark- she is simply an awesome real estate agent, and a fierce competitor. She has taken us through 3 of my own purchases, and 4 sales. A rule she taught me on our first home, is to use your own agent. It costs you ZERO as the buyer, but buys you piece of mind. I find the dual agent situation entirely unethical, but I realize it is legal in many states. While there is no advantage to sharing an agent, there are dozens of reasons that it's a horrible idea.

I'd add "buy a test kit" to the list. That agent needs the sale, and has no interest in anything else. He is trying to minimize your concerns. Did you sign an agent agreement with him for his services? If not, call the first agent in your phone book from a different company-anyone. You need a negotiator on YOUR side. Your current "dual agent" is going to try and talk you out of this because he doesn't want to split his commission.

 

You are doing the right thing. Business is business, that is all. If there is no problem, great. If there is, that changes things.


Good luck!

Abner

 

Hey Raristud,

I forgot to offer you congratulations on possibly buying a new home!!!! Good for you. I wish you the best. It is a great feeling to buy a home.

I am going to be having all new copper pipe put in my house, and the bathrooms are going to be remodeled as well. I am getting excited!

Abner

 

Thanks abner. No granite countertops?

 

You are smart to have the inspection done. A house built in 1961 is bound to have lead paint in it somewhere. Make sure you know the law in your state about this. Where I live you can get an estimate for having the lead paint removed (expensive) or encapsulated (more affordable) and either make it a contingency of the sale or reduce your offer by that amount.

 

Thanks for the info kizmet. If the results of the lead inspection or home inspection are not to my satisfaction, I do have the option of terminating the contract with money in escrow to be returned to us. I requested lead inspection from my current state of residence, which has stricter home inspection standards. The home of interest is located in another state. For some reason, my real estate agent of that state sounded a bit nervous on the phone today and tried to downplay the lead inspection. She told me that no one has ever requested a lead inspection from that particular home among other silly things. Well there is a first time for everything. I'll spill the lowdown next week when the results become available.

 

>>

I hope part of your hands-on training sees the trouble with dual agency.
One of my longest friends is a shark- she is simply an awesome real estate agent, and a fierce competitor. She has taken us through 3 of my own purchases, and 4 sales. A rule she taught me on our first home, is to use your own agent. It costs you ZERO as the buyer, but buys you piece of mind. I find the dual agent situation entirely unethical, but I realize it is legal in many states. While there is no advantage to sharing an agent, there are dozens of reasons that it's a horrible idea.

I'd add "buy a test kit" to the list. That agent needs the sale, and has no interest in anything else. He is trying to minimize your concerns. Did you sign an agent agreement with him for his services? If not, call the first agent in your phone book from a different company-anyone. You need a negotiator on YOUR side. Your current "dual agent" is going to try and talk you out of this because he doesn't want to split his commission.[/QUOTE]


I agree with Jennifer - you should have your own agent.

Personaly I would not be worried about leaded paint because I would have repainted the entire house. However if the house is close to a freeway or busy road there may be lots of lead in the ground around you; so it may be a good idea to have the ground checked at the same time.

Did you check for asbestos and termites?

We bought a new home several years ago and the seller (builder) had to inform us about flood zones, earthquakes (I live 1/2 mile from the San Andeas Fault), aircraft approach & takeoff patterns, and high winds.

 

Where I live it's not at all unusual for homes to be over 100 years old. My home is 186 years old. Everyone pays for a formal home inspection before buying a new home. This is the one I use.

http://www.tigerhomeinspection.com/

I posted the link not as an ad but so you can see the range of the inspection services they supply. Home inspectors save you money. They find every little thing that's wrong with a house/property and give you a detailed report that you can then use as leverage in the buying process. Lead paint, asbestos, dry rot, bad roof, failing furnace, leaky pipes, all these things will be discovered and documented. It costs a few hundred dollars and I think it's worth every penny.

 

I agree. A home inspection is the best money you could spend something on, next to DL of course.

Abner

 

Thanks for the tip

 

It was money well spent. We are looking at other homes and decided not to take the house.

 

I would add that if you have any reason to believe that the agent knew or suspected there was a lead problem and didn't disclose it, I would file a formal complaint with the state real estate licensing board in your state.

Agents do this shady shit all the time and it's simply wrong. In California, one of the most common things that practically every real estate agent agrees on is having the termite inspector exclude inspection of any deck or porch from the inspection of the rest of the home. Why? Because a very large percentage of decks and porches have termite problems here.

Fortunately, I had a good agent who told me this and got a separate termite inspection when I purchased my home, even though the previous inspection (excluding the deck) showed no problem. Guess what? Termite problems in the deck, which yielded a substantial discount on the purchase price of the home.

 

Good advice. We decided to change home inspectors and that threw my agent off. The agent was uncomfortable with the home inspector, interrupted, and even challenged him when the electrical systems were being inspected. Cookderosa brought up some good points regarding dual agents.
On a broader scale, at least I am contributing to the economy by putting people to work. Home buying and selling can be considered a stimulus to the economy.

 

I once had a female real estate agent try to use her female charm on my home inspector. It did not work and she got pissed. oh well. You have to look out for yourself in this world.

Abner