Flreia's Blog
EPA Lead-Based Paint Initiative | May 24, 2010
It’s been a month since the EPA’s new lead-based paint initiative, how has it affected your business and what’s your 
opinion of this new initiative?
As for our business model, this new initiative has definitely added a new crease to our buying profile. Any property that we may purchase that’s pre-1978 we’ll definitely have to take into consideration that our rehab costs could go up anywhere from 20-35% or more, making our buy price much lower. In the immediate future that could cause us to loose on some buying opportunities as there are many out there that do not even know this initiative even exists and will not take into consideration the potential of additional costs.
My opinion of this initiative is a bit undefined. The underlying merits of it appear to be well intended, but the implementation seems a bit over-the-edge, especially with fines in the $32,000 range per incident per day. Let us know what you think, we would love to get your take.
Catch our recently recorded webinar discussing the EPA lead-based paint initiative at www.REIPMagazine.com/Pete.
6 Comments »
Well…
First off, I think that the external water collection piece of this is absolutely absurd! What about hedges, spray, cost, etc. I guess the solution is to paint over the dirt and sulfur stains instead of pressure washing.
On the proactive side…
Just because a property was built before 1978 does not actually mean that it has lead paint. In fact, there might be a good chance that it does not. With that being said, what are the sources to utilize to do an inspection to certify that it is lead free? Where do you find these firms to provide these services? How much is this service? What years are the ones to really statistically watch for? If this inspection cost is reasonable, perhaps this isn’t really that much of a hurdle. Thoughts?
Comment by Michael S. — May 24, 2010 @ 8:20 pm
Pete mentioned that you could get a certified inspector to verify that your home is lead-base free. I believe the inspection cost is around $75. Might be worth investigating it further.
I’m pretty sure that many of these homes may have been rehabbed and this could be a moot point.
Comment by FLREIA — May 26, 2010 @ 5:05 pm
As a Licensed General Contractor myself….this is way over the top!!!! These people just keep slowing down the economy and adding more cost and RED TAPE. They have absolutely no common sense…and could care-less what burdens they put on society. I have never heard any painter or carpenter ever getting lead poison from saw dust!! These people need to go find a REAL job that that contributes to society!! Rather than putting burdens on people they cannot bear.
Comment by Jeffery Summers — May 24, 2010 @ 9:16 pm
So Jeff, how do you really feel?
Thanks for contributing to the blog.
Comment by FLREIA — May 26, 2010 @ 5:12 pm
Hey there, FLREIA fans! Looks like there are all kinds of goodies out there to enjoy when it comes to South Florida’s premier real estate investing association. Anyone ever heard of FaceBook?
Seriously though, while I do not intend to actively venture into the rehab aspect of investing, this information certainly could not hurt.
Check out Pete Young’s lead based initiative certification class once it kicks off. It is in Atlanta but the guy really knows his stuff and has been doing this longer than a lot of “flash-in-the-pan” gurus.
Heck, maybe we can convince him to come back to South Florida and do a certification event just for us!!
Cheers!
Comment by Mark E. Gibbons — May 24, 2010 @ 9:39 pm
We are talking with Pete to create a training course down here.
Comment by FLREIA — May 26, 2010 @ 5:10 pm