Federal regulations require full disclosure of lead paint in a house to prospective buyers prior to sale if it was built before 1978. The regulations are designed to force homeowners to take corrective action that will eventually rid the country of the hazards posed by residential lead paint.
Lead in paint can contribute to serious health risks that include brain damage and impairment of the nervous system. These lead-induced issues manifest themselves in the form of inhibited growth, headaches, pregnancy complications, digestive health problems, joint pain, muscle aches and behavioral problems.
Although lead affects all human beings, children are particularly susceptible to the effects of lead, making them the primary group at risk from lead paint. Primarily, the threat faced by children include those small enough to unwittingly eat paint chips.
Lead based paint law requires a written disclosure of all known lead paint issues in a home to potential buyers. Also, if any tests for lead have ever been performed on the house, homeowners must furnish the results of those tests to prospective buyers.
When a contract for sale of a home is completed, buyers by law have up to 10 days to test the home for lead. Buyers are not required to have tests performed, but they can. If they do and lead is found in the home, buyers are free from the terms of the contract.
To help make home buyers aware of the problems that surround lead paint, home sellers or real estate agents must provide prospective buyers an EPA document that teaches them how to protect their families from residential lead.
Lead based paint that is not peeling or flaking normally is considered to be safe. However, dust from sanding painted surfaces can pollute residential air with lead dust that is easily in haled by occupants. Also, lead based paint can contaminate the soil surrounding a home after it has peeled and fallen to the ground over the decades.
The laws about lead paint in homes are designed to encourage the resolution of issues prior to the transfer of a home from one owner to another. After all, few people want to own a home if they know that they will be responsible for costly clean up or for exposing their family to horrific health risks.
Lead based paint cleanup must be performed by certified abatement companies with training in the safe removal and disposal of lead paint. These abatement firms also have technologies available to them that can seal lead paint so that it no longer is a threat.
Federal law also governs remodeling projects in homes built before 1978, even when the home is not up for sale. These laws require that homeowners hire companies that are certified with the handling of lead paint if more than six square feet of paint will be affected by renovations. Lead-Safe Certified Firms may cost a lot to hire, but their fees will likely be less than the fines and other penalties that can result from performing illegal modifications to a home.
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