Commonly Known Hazards That Are Present In Real Estate Properties

It is very fun and exciting, when purchasing your first piece of real estate. There are so many things to do, so much paper work to sign, and so many check lists to go over. Before you leap into a binding contract over a piece of property, be sure that you know everything about the property. Several people each year are stooped into buying property that is under value due to hazardous regulations, and never finding out about why it was so cheap. There are three main types of hazards to look for homes previously built before roughly 1980, they are lead, asbestos, and formaldehyde.

The first type of hazard, lead, is common in homes and buildings that were previously constructed before the 80s. Lead is highly toxic, therefore many home buyers have an assessment done to check and report any evidence of lead in the home. Lead was used in many paints of different colors, when painting the interior and exterior of homes, it can also be found on some wood surfaces that were painted. When you think of a lead pipe, you imagine the age old board game Clue, but this time it was the constructors, underneath the home, with the lead exposed pipes. If you are exposed to lead and show symptoms like weakness, anemia, constipation, and paralysis of the wrists and ankles, more than likely you are suffering from lead poisoning.

Asbestos is the most common hazard because it is widely known across the world to be in most old buildings built before 1978, whether they are business buildings or residential homes. When constructing buildings and homes, they were using insulation that consisted of asbestos. Asbestos was known to be fireproof and a good insulator, therefore, they placed this insulation around ducts, heaters, pipes, furnaces, floor tiles, linoleum, wall board, and the exterior siding and roofing contained it as well. The two main causes of health issues for people that were exposed to asbestos for long periods of time, are asbestosis, a lung disease, and Mesothelioma, a certain type of cancer.

Probably the least likely to cause any noticeable damage, if exposed to, is formaldehyde. This substance, or gas rather, was used in building materials that construction crews used to build residents in the 70's. It is most commonly found in foam insulation; however, it can be found in many different aspects of an old home. The hazard with this gas is that it can cause several respiratory problems, such as wheezing. It can also cause cancer in animals and a severe irritation of the eyes and skin. Sick Building Syndrome, or SBS, comes from very poor air quality, whether it be inside a home, business, or building of other sorts. The common symptoms of SBS are fatigue, headaches, nausea or vomiting, and a high sensitivity to odors.

Taking a look back at all the possible hazards that live within real estate, it is best to ask questions before purchasing any piece of property older than 1980. Most real estate companies will have documents with the information that they will hand out to potential buyers. A Seller of a property that contains hazardous material, may be subjected to inform potential buyers of any hazardous material within the home; however, this may vary from state to state.