Agree with Perky & buyright. My purpose was to talk about how this new law will affect Realtors and homeowners.

I can start another topic "Lead Poisoning" to discuss if it happens or not.

Now back to the topic ...

Down here, we are starting to see Realtors getting hit with not following fiduciary duties as it pertains to this new lead law. Mainly on the buying side.

Not a lot right now, but definitely growing as more and more people hear about this law.

Well to start with the fine for doing work on property built prior to 1978 without lead based paint certification is $37,500 PER DAY!!! You have to be enrolled in a LBP class by Oct 1 to avoid the fine and have to complete the course by Dec 31, 2010.

Those who think that there isn't any threat from lead based paint are probably suffering from low IQ resulting from exposure as kids. It's much more damaging than you think, and it affects adults as well as children.

If you don't think it affects you, see what happens if you tell a client it's no big deal, or say they just have to make sure that their kids don't eat any paint chips, and see what happens if they get poisoned and the parents come after you! Not pretty.

http://www.realty4atlanta.com/lead-rears-ugly-head/

Deepsea,

Wow! You are the first Realtor I've known that is up to date with the law. Very few contractors know about the Oct 1/ Dec 31 dates.

Just to add to your post ... contractors can still get fined $37,500 a day for not complying with the work requirements. So, even though they won't get fined for not being certified ... they can get fined for not following work requirements.

To protect Realtors (representing the seller) ...

1. Do not pay the non-certified contractor directly. Let the homeowner pay.

2. If you personally arrange for repairs/renovations always use a Lead Safe Certified Firm.

3. If you make money off of arranging repairs/renovations you also need to be a Lead Safe Certified Firm.

My advice to seller agents is to get a signed receipt saying you informed the seller that they should use Lead Safe Certified Firms on any prep work.

The above, can help you from being in a lawsuit.

I have heard rumors that property managers will have to get certified as well. Have you heard anything about that?

From the EPA Website (FAQ)

A property management company acts as an agent for the landlord and has the same responsibilities as the landlord under the RRP Rule. Therefore, if the property management company uses its own employees to do the work, the property management company must be a certified firm and one of the employees must be a certified renovator.

If the property management company hires a renovation firm to perform the renovation, the property management company does not need firm or renovator certification, but the firm the property management company hires must be certified and must perform the renovation using a certified renovator that directs and provides on-the-job training to any workers that are not certified renovators.

Has that been ajudicated? I compare the issue to sex offender searches. That has been tested in court and as far as I know, our responsilities as agents to the owners/landlords are only to inform buyers where to search, not to perform the searches for them. And that applies to the buyer's agent too.

Doin,

Not sure which post you are talking about?

Dean, this quote sparked the thought. I wondered if the EPA was over reaching some. But maybe you are not talking about responsibility via agency, but simply, who needs to be certified. When I read your post quoted above I was thinking about the 'realtors being hit' you mentioned above in a previous post.

When I look at it again, you might have changed lanes and been talking simply about the need for the property management company to be certified as gent for the owner. I was taking it this way...the EPA can assign blame all the way down the chain to the realtor because of the agency relationship. That was the point I was contesting by asking if it had been court tested. Now I can see that you might have been making a different point altogether.

We have forms that specifically state if we are working with contractors for repairs on behalf of the sellers. I can already see when things going south to point the finger at the PM company.

The lead paint is going to hugely devalue these properties.

Same thing with asbestos and mold abatement.Before with the older homes investors could use cheap alternatives to fix up a property to make it worthwhile.

Now for instance there are properties in Atlanta 3/1's and 3/2's for 12,000.The problem is even if I get it for 10k with the new government regs it's a loser.

Get for 10k and hold for 4 years.Value goes back up to 50k.If I buy at 10k I will AT LEAST have 40k in repairs doing it the governments way.

I think alot of these properties need to be bulldozed and build new green houses with grants from the government.

Would kick start the construction industry again and the remediation companies would still get work from the tear downs.

Not if you own them Super, right? I guess you have to own them AND do the work yourself to be exempt. If you own them and parcel out the work, then all bets are off.

Only if you are a homeowner meaning LIVING in the property.Investors could say they are living there but then I wouldn't want to be the one when the TENANTS SUE and the EPA hits you up fro tens of thousands of dollars in fines.The solution is have the test done and keep a copy of it for the EPA and provide a copy to the tenant along with them signing the lead disclosure.

In Georgia we have homestead exemption for homeowners plus the tax billing address matches the owners address which on rentals never is sent to the tenants.



Information for Property Owners of Rental Housing, Child-Occupied Facilities

Property owners who renovate, repair, or prepare surfaces for painting in pre-1978 rental housing or space rented by child-care facilities must, before beginning work, provide tenants with a copy of EPA's lead hazard information pamphlet Renovate Right: Important Lead Hazard Information for Families, Child Care Providers, and Schools (PDF) (11 pp, 1.1MB) | en espaņol (PDF) (11 pp, 2.4MB). Owners of these rental properties must document compliance with this requirement; EPA's sample pre-renovation disclosure form (PDF) (1 pp, 53K) may be used for this purpose.

After April 22, 2010, property owners who perform these projects in pre-1978 rental housing or space rented by child-care facilities must be certified and must follow the lead-safe work practices required by EPA's Renovation, Repair and Remodeling rule. To become certified, property owners must submit an application for firm certification (PDF) (9 pp, 642K) and fee payment to EPA. EPA began processing applications on October 22, 2009. The Agency has up to 90 days after receiving a complete request for certification to approve or disapprove the application.

Property owners who perform renovation, repairs, and painting jobs in rental property should also:

* Take training to learn how to perform lead-safe work practices.
* Learn the lead laws that apply to you regarding certification and lead-safe work practices beginning April 22, 2010.
* Keep records to demonstrate that you and your workers have been trained in lead-safe work practices and that you follow lead-safe work practices on the job. To make recordkeeping easier, you may use the sample recordkeeping checklist (PDF) (1 pg, 83K) that EPA has developed to help contractors comply with the renovation recordkeeping requirements that took effect April 22, 2010.
* Read about how to comply with EPA's rule in the EPA Small Entity Compliance Guide to Renovate Right (PDF) (32 pp, 5.5MB) | en espaņol (PDF) (34 pp, 1.3MB).
* Read about how to use lead-safe work practices in EPA's Steps to Lead Safe Renovation, Repair and Painting (PDF) (36 pp, 878K) | en espaņol (PDF) (36 pp, 1.5MB).

Top of Page

Information for Homeowners Working at Home

If you are a homeowner performing renovation, repair, or painting work in your own home, EPA's RRP rule does not cover your project. However, you have the ultimate responsibility for the safety of your family or children in your care. If you are living in a pre-1978 home and planning to do painting or repairs, please read a copy of EPA's Renovate Right: Important Lead Hazard Information for Families, Child Care Providers, and Schools (PDF) lead hazard information pamphlet (11 pp, 1.1MB). | en espaņol (PDF) (11 pp, 2.4MB). You may also want to call the National Lead Information Center at 1-800-424-LEAD (5323) and ask for more information on how to work safely in a home with lead-based paint.

Top of Page

Information for Tenants and Families of Children under Age 6 in Child Care Facilities and Schools

As a tenant or a parent or guardian of children in a child care facility or school, you should know your rights when a renovation job is performed in your home, or in the child care facility or school that your child attends.

* Before starting a renovation in residential buildings built before 1978, the contractor or property owner is required to have tenants sign a pre-renovation disclosure form (PDF) (1 pp, 53K), which indicates that the tenant received the Renovate Right lead hazard information pamphlet.
* Beginning in December 2008, the contractor must also make renovation information available to the parents or guardians of children under age six that attend child care facilities and schools, and to provide to owners and administrators of pre-1978 child care facilities and schools to be renovated a copy of EPA's Renovate Right: Important Lead Hazard Information for Families, Child Care Providers, and Schools (PDF) lead hazard information pamphlet (11 pp, 1.1MB) | en espaņol (PDF) (11 pp, 2.4MB).

Information for Contractors

As a contractor, you play an important role in helping to prevent lead exposure. Ordinary renovation and maintenance activities can create dust that contains lead. By following the lead-safe work practices, you can prevent lead hazards.

Contractors who perform renovation, repairs, and painting jobs in pre-1978 housing and child-occupied facilities must, before beginning work, provide owners, tenants, and child-care facilities with a copy of EPA's lead hazard information pamphlet Renovate Right: Important Lead Hazard Information for Families, Child Care Providers, and Schools (PDF) (11 pp, 1.1MB) | en espaņol (PDF) (11 pp, 2.4MB). Contractors must document compliance with this requirement; EPA's pre-renovation disclosure form (PDF) (1 pp, 53K) may be used for this purpose.

Understand that after April 22, 2010, federal law requires you to be certified and to use lead-safe work practices. To become certified, renovation contractors must submit an application and fee payment to EPA.

* Application for firm certification (PDF) (9 pp, 590K)

EPA began processing applications on October 22, 2009. The Agency has up to 90 days after receiving a complete request for certification to approve or disapprove the application.

Contractors who perform renovation, repairs, and painting jobs should also:

* Take training to learn how to perform lead-safe work practices.
o Find a training provider that has been accredited by EPA to provide training for renovators under EPA's Renovation, Repair, and Painting (RRP) Program.
o Please note that if you previously completed an eligible renovation training course you may take the 4-hour refresher course instead of the 8-hour initial course from an accredited training provider to become a certified renovator. Click here for a list of eligible courses.
* Provide a copy of your EPA or state lead training certificate to your client.
* Tell your client what lead-safe methods you will use to perform the job.
* Learn the lead laws that apply to you regarding certification and lead-safe work practices beginning April 22, 2010.
* Ask your client to share the results of any previously conducted lead tests.
* Provide your client with references from at least three recent jobs involving homes built before 1978.
* Keep records to demonstrate that you and your workers have been trained in lead-safe work practices and that you follow lead-safe work practices on the job. To make recordkeeping easier, you may use the sample recordkeeping checklist (PDF) (1 pg, 83K) that EPA has developed to help contractors comply with the renovation recordkeeping requirements that took effect April 22, 2010.
* Read about how to comply with EPA's rule in the EPA Small Entity Compliance Guide to Renovate Right (PDF) (32 pp, 5.5MB) | en espaņol (PDF) (34 pp, 1.3MB).
* Read about how to use lead-safe work practices in EPA's Steps to Lead Safe Renovation, Repair and Painting (PDF) (36 pp, 878K) | en espaņol (PDF) (36 pp, 1.5MB).

NOTE: Contractors and training providers working in Wisconsin, Iowa, North Carolina, Mississippi, Kansas, Rhode Island, Utah, Oregon and Massachusetts must contact the state to find out more about its training and certification requirements. These states are authorized to administer their own RRP programs in lieu of the federal program. In following the above links you will leave the EPA Web site. Exit EPA Disclaimer

Contractors should also read the EPA Enforcement Alert newsletter titled Compliance with New Federal Lead-Based Paint Requirements (PDF) (4 pp, 120K).

I was not referring to rental space, but thanks for the data. I was thinking of buy, fix, and sell.

doin,

I was talking about the Realtors being hit in an earlier post and then later, I was answering a question on property managers.

Realtors main threat is not from the EPA (although some things they might do can result in EPA fines), but from civil litigation. The civil litigations would arise from not doing their fiduciary duties.

With this new law, no longer can a Realtor just get by with the lead disclosure, but needs to be proactive in protecting their client from lead hazards.

One predominate lead hazard would be if the home was worked on by a non-certified firm or the homeowner themselves.

Because of this new law Realtors are now easy targets for lawyers, where before this law they weren't.

I do a lot of talks at brokerage firms on this subject. In most major cities several out of court situations have been settled, because the Realtor & Brokerage firm were not being proactive in protecting their clients.

Besides being a lead inspector and Lead Based Paint Consultant ... I am director of an organization that has construction lawyers, real estate lawyers, EPA trainers, Certified Firms, Environmental Consultants and Certified Renovators. I mention this, because this is how I hear out of court situations.

Thanks Dean. I suppose it waits to be seen what fate awaits us as real estate agents. I remember being told fearful tales when the mold litigation train tried to gain steam. It never seemed to develop. If I read your post accurately you think our risk as agents is along the same lines.

Doin,

A Realtor is suppose to know and understand the laws.

When a Realtor representing the seller knows that work was done by a non-certified firm or the homeowner themselves and is not disclosed ... then they can personally get into trouble. This is because the Realtor can assume that lead hazards exist.

The lead hazard is the construction dust from any painted/stained surface that was disturbed by the non-certified firm or the untrained homeowner themselves.

When a Realtor representing the buyer doesn't ask for all knowledge of past repairs/renovations ... they are not doing their fiduciary duty. If those repairs/renovations were done by a non-certified firm or the homeowner, then the Realtor representing the buyer can safely assume that lead hazards exist and that a lead inspection/assessment is needed.

Every Realtor understands about the law for lead based paint DISCLOSURE. This new law is about lead based paint HAZARDS. Two totally different laws.

With mold the Realtor doesn't know something is bad. With this lead law, the Realtor does know something is bad.

From some other post, they were talking about the Investor/Flipper. The law states that anyone who performs work for compensation is required to be a Lead Safe Certified Firm who will use a Certified Renovator. An investor/flipper who personally performs work is understood to be receiving compensation.