Conflicting Info On ASBESTOS
I recently purchased my first property... unfortunately relying on my realtor to give me all the info I needed. The property was purchased as-is. Between the realtor, seller (another realestate company) two appraisers and the home inspector, no one told me the house had asbestos on the boiler pipes. I had two companies quote me a price of about $1,000 to remove the asbestos. This is my question... is it better to have it removed or to leave it alone. I've read that if it's been exposed or damage, to have it removed. And it has been damaged. I'm just concerned about the long term effects on those who will be living there. I was going to live in the house and then sell it in about two years and let the property appreciate. Now I have a lot of reservations about moving in, even after the abatement. Could someone please give me some advice. Oh, by the way... I plan to some day have the basement finished, so it was a concern of mine to have people working down there around the pipes. :-?
I think I'd spend the thousand dollars and eliminate this as an issue on the resale of the house.
The EPA recommends you manage the asbestos in place, rather than remove it.
-Chris
[addsig]
If a house of of a certain age there is a good chance that every house has some amount of asbestos in it somewhere. If nobody knew it was there, how do you know it is there now?
If there is an official fix for it why not do it? Whether it is removal or containment, once it is done correctly the problem is solved right? So why would there be any concern after it has been fixed?
It depends on whether the Asbestos is friable (as in insulation that can be broken easily into bits and pieces and sent floating thru the air) or non-friable (hard and mixed with a base such as shingles). I just dealt with this in a rehab of a 1906 craftsman here in CA. The process for friable shingles is actually not too expensive; as for friable, it gets much worse and messier depending on the extent of usage. Among other search results for Abatement Companies, check www.whitelung.org/pubs/aith/4.html for some good unbiased info as below:
* Removal--$15 to $20 per linear foot of pipe covering and $15 to $25 per square foot of spray on material are typical industrial removal costs. Home costs may be more.
* Encapsulation--About $2 to $6 per foot.
* Repair--About the same as encapsulation.
* Enclosure--Depends on the size and nature of the area to be enclosed but runs about 40 to 60 percent of removal costs.
Again, I don't know what state you are in (each state/county may have different/more strict rules than the Fed/OSHA) but if you go with a licensed professional company, they carry the burden of liability. Also, to allay your concerns, it is not "black death" waiting to get you. Its just an issue that a $1000.00 bucks can fix and you need not worry again for your own piece of mind and to eliminate the need for disclosure at the sale. The typical retail buyer will recoil in fear if you mention it . . . My $.02
thank you all for your help![ Edited by mahogany48224 on Date 05/10/2004 ]