ABOUT LEAD BASED PAINT.
What home buyers need to know.

Lead based paint matters are important to home buyers considering buying a home constructed in 1978 or earlier.

GET THE LEAD BASED PAINT DISCLOSURE
THE KEY WORD THERE IS DISCLOSURE.

The law requires that any owner attempting to sell a home constructed in 1978 or before disclose their knowledge of the existence of lead based paint existing in the property. That means that the seller should provide the disclosure when prospective buyers are considering buying the house. Too often the buyer doesn't receive the lead based paint disclosure until they get the Contract of Sale package of documents and addenda. Buyers should receive the SELLER LEAD BASED PAINT DISCLOSURE AND EPA PAMPHLET when evaluating the merits of a house.

HOME BUYERS SHOULD UNDERSTAND THE RISKS OF LEAD PAINT INGESTION TO YOUNG CHILDREN. Because of the extreme risk to young children from lead exposure and ingestion from picking up chips of paint or inhaling aerosol from paint scrapings in doorways or window frames, we need to be very, very careful to not gloss over this important disclosure.

ASK YOUR AGENT FOR THE EPA LEAD BASED PAINT BOOKLET.

1. Make sure your agent provides you with the lead based paint disclosure BEFORE you made a decision about buying a property.

2. Buyers must assume, in the absence of testing, that any home build 1978 or earlier could have lead based paint.

Buyers must be prepared to maintain the painted surfaces and keep chipping and peeling paint encapsulated with fresh paint. Make sure windows and doorways are well maintained and are not scraping painted surfaces causing dust with lead based paint into the atmosphere in the house or on the surfaces where children could get it in their mouths and ingest the dust.

There are hundreds of thousands of homes in this area, Maryland and Northern Virginia that were constructed prior to 1979. In lower price ranges, it should be expected to see homes with lead based paint. The important matter for buyers and their agents to understand is that the disclosure isn't going to change whether or not the house contains lead based paint. It is a requirement of the law that disclosure be made and the buyers understand what they are buying.

http://www.epa.gov/lead/index.html

Copyright 2002 Lenn Harley