I ma having this dilemma, as a 1st time home buyer... Bought a 2 family, when we bought, we just received a letter stating that the previous owner was "NOT" aware about LEAD or NOT LEAD, I was some what surprised (that they like never care to find out) because they had 2 child... Well we start the process to get a contractor to do some renovations, we always reminded the contractor (Brazilian) to check for lead, he always said that he was going to do it... The project that was for 3 weeks: kitchen, bathroom, closet, doors, remove two walls, strip old floor and polish it, plus paint the whole place, from 3 weeks went to 2 month and half, the 1st month and half we were not at the house due to the paint and floor odor, but we left fans in the windows and around the house to make sure the odor fade away as much as possible, also baking soda, orange scents stuff etc... Then we move in to make more pressure to the contractor, because he was coming a few days yes, and a week no... Long history short, one of his sub-contractors was the person who finish all the pending job, at the end (after 3 month) they never check about lead, I call Border Health, city hall, made several calls to find out about the lead, they said that there were done several assessment but they never got a report back, normally the assessment is done by an inspector and this person pass the report back to the owner and the owner normally pass a copy to the Health Dept... The previous owner does not have any paper, the estimate to de-lead is around 10k per unit... I have 2 units and I don't have that money... There is a program that help with this and cover more than 85%, but there is a household limit income that is killing us because we surpassed that amount... I had a son less than 3 years old and my tenant also has one... We are tight with the debts and credit cards, because the Reno went more than we expected and other things came up that needs fixing :(.

Any ideas, recommendation? I just thought to buy the lead test kit, but since I am not an expert will be difficult for me to know where to check and where not to... I can hire a inspector, but he will charge me over 600 us to do it, and this won't count toward the program that help with this... Should I go ahead and do this inspection myself to know how much lead do we have?

I made an appointment for my son to test him for lead. Also told that to my tenant, he will do the same...

Thank you in advance.

I was always told (from my first day in real estate) to do all tests before escrow closes.

When was the house built? Pre 1978? Then worry, after 78, lead paint was outlawed.

If deleading is a problem, then sell the house and buy one built after 1978. Be sure to note on sales disclosure that you do not know because at this point, you don't. Unless you're prepared to fix what you find, best not look too hard to find something to fix.

- fred I wish I had that advice before, now is too late :(.

- bet umm didn't knew that part about the database, when I called the Border Health at City Hall they mention that there has been inspection or assessment done at this house on prior years (2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015 I think that is what she said), but they never got the report back... I was thinking about get certified for that... Also I had other thing, I spoke to MassSave, they came to do an assessment and the house need insulation... Too much thing on my hands right now and the winter right in the corner.

- NE sorry for the confusion, this is the house I currently own and live in...

Read the lead pamphlet yourself and follow the recommitations. Most preventive measures are housekeepering.

I'm not sure why you are reporting yourself! Like shooting yourself in the foot.

IF there WAS lead paint ever put on that house, it probably has been painted over. Did you paint the entire house as you fixed it up? If it is covered it is OK (Unless crazy, tenant-friendly, MA has their own ideas)

Sure, it's possible that any lead paint that possibly could have been present may have been disturbed during renovation (and there is really nothing you can do about that now) - but that's a lot of MAYBE. Maybe not. Maybe (probably) everything is OK

I would not spend one more minute worrying about it. Don't let your child peel off paint and eat it. I think insulation is more important. You can have it blown into the walls pretty inexpensively, and it will save you a LOT of $ on heating / cooling.

Welcome to this site. Please read all you can here - and ask lots of questions. You will soon learn things about how to be a professional landlord, and will know what to do when the "good tenant and neighbor" suddenly goes bad one day. (Not wishing that on you, but..... be ready)

You purchased the home with a program, you are turning to other programs for help. I too would not report myself. I too would not want to test any kids. The positive readings they get could come from the cheap toys they bought or the playgrounds they visit.

As Alley mentioned. Many homes you would imagine to be filled with lead, in fact, are not.

As for the previous owner. I too had many lead inspections done on a particular home. Year after year. I never was given the results, just a pass or fail. year after year. Guess what? The house turned out to be lead free. So those inspectors, blessed by the state....knew they were not finding lead but said nothing. The state, who was given the reports...said nothing.

How did you find your original contractor?

Did you verify his license with the state?

Is he also a registered HIC contractor?

Is he RRP certified to do work on property that might contain lead?

What if any permits were pulled for these projects?

If permits were pulled who pulled them?

Have any inspections been made of plumbing, heating, electrical, fire stopping, insulation, etc on any of the work that was done?

I would be very careful about what info you post on a public web site regarding these possible lead violations.

Thank you guys for all your input and recommendations, i will keep researching.

- bet thanks again, that page is really useful.

- DJ the second floor was painted totally, the 1st floor just some walls, the attic was not painted. Waiting for the last assesment to be completed so we can schedule the insulation.

-AllyM thanks for the correction, i will look for that information.

- Smokowna thanks, good info, you know sometimes the info online can be more harmful than helpful, thanks for sharing.

- Steve thanks, now you scared me :/ ...

Find it by recommendation.

Yes check his license with the state.

Yes to the inspection on plumbing, heating, electrical, fire stopping and insulation.

I have no knowledge of the answer of your other questions, now you let me thinking more :D, more homework for me.

I am a licensed contractor and real estate owner/investor/manager of many rentals. People, professional or not, haven't a clue as to the possible hazards are in homes. Even if you hired a professional inspector, their scope of the inspection is limited, they don't go into tearing up surfaces and conducting analysis on building materials.

Case in point, many times I've walked into a home to give an estimate on one phase of the clients project. I end up taking the wife by the hand, with children in tow, and state you can never go back inside -- that's until you have the necessary remediation done to remove the lead, asbestos and mold contamination's.

No one thought to test the plaster in the walls for asbestos or lead paint. In this case the house had both. While the contractors were working the a/c system was on, spreading asbestos all over the house.

There is a tool, x-ray florescent scanner that can quickly determine of an area contains asbestos, lead and other hazards. This device costs $25,000 or rents for $400 a day. A professional tester will have his own machine and can quickly determine the condition of the home. Or you can have samples taken and sent to a lab or analysis.

LordZen[MA], I didn't mean to scare you but I did want you to realize that unlike other parts of the country, MA takes lead issues very serious.

IMO before you discuss this with a lot of people you need to gather some info on the owners & broker who sold the property to you, the original contractor who started the project, all of the subs including the one who took over the project, MA requirements for working on properties with potential lead, the federal RRP program and the previous rental history of your tenant.

Was your original contractor or the "sub who took over" the one to handle the inspections?

Did the RE agent who handled the sale of the property provide you with a multi page lead disclosure?

Did you have a buyers agent represent you during the purchase?

Did you give your tenant a lead safe pamphlet along with the release stating that you are unaware of any lead?

Were the previous places that your child & your tenant's child stay prior to moving in to your place lead safe? This also includes places they stayed for extended periods such as relative's houses & day care facilities?

Was anyone living in your building during the renovations?

Were any of the contractors RRP certified?

How is title to this property held?

These are the type of things you should be checking on.

How did we all grow up in house with lead paint? Lead solder in the plumbing? Asbestos brakes? Asbestos in the school buildings? Mold in the air? Stairs without railings? Hot water boiling on the stove? Riding in the back of the pickup truck? Walking on the lawn? Eating hot dogs and twinkies? I think it is terrible that people are so afraid of everything these days.

You are so in it deep.

This is why I will not buy anything older than 1978.

There are just too many places out there built after this to worry about the older ones.

OK when this whole lead thing got started I took the course and got certified. The contractor should have:

1. tested for lead

2.if lead paint present, the room has to be sealed off with plastic and all items with lead paint have to be removed also covered with plastic and taken to a special dump site. Items not with lead paint are covered to protect them from lead dust.

3. Deleading may just mean paint all walls to encapsulate the lead paint and keep watching those walls for peeling paint. Repaint as necessary.

So the contractor maybe did none of this. Your job now is to get all construction dust from removing the wall, tested to see if it has lead in it and get the whole place vacuumed out by a lead removal company. But FIRST, find the guy who tests for lead with the xray machine. He will be smarter than the others and know how to help you with the dust etc and will recommned someone to help you. Dust is the problem you have now.

LordZen, I use Mel Blackman for my lead inspections. He's a nice guy who will give you straight answers.

Mel Blackman

PO Box 358, Stoneham, MA 02180-0358

Phone:

781-820-8611

Email:

melblackman @geeeeeee mail.com