Handyman basing quote on lead paint concerns

[Jake Sablosky]

Hey there BP experts! 

I closed on my first rental prop (4-unit student housing) in October and I'm totally new to working with contractors. 

The property is old, built in 1911. It has some rodent issues and I want to get the unfinished basement sealed off. There are tons of holes in the siding that contacts the ground. I got a quote from a handyman to do this and he is saying that because of the age of the property, he will need to take special care to follow EPA guidelines for lead paint. I have no evidence (nor does he, as far as I know) that there actually is lead paint. 

With that being said, he quoted to seal off the basement area to rodent entry & to repair the siding as needed (without painting) it would be their cost of materials +20% markup and a labor rate of $130.00 per man-hour.

Does this sound reasonable? I am in the Willamette Valley in Oregon (Albany/Corvallis area). 

Thanks for any help you can provide! 

[Dennis M.]

The  handyman wants 130$ an hour lol are you serious ? that’s completely insane . My handyman would literally drink lead based paint from a tall glass if I offered him 130$ . Unless you are forced by the government officials by gun point t there’s no way on earth I’d be paying for such outrageous things or prices . Lead and asbestos are no big deal .they actually are good in some regards . Look  Those college students you’ll be renting to will be drinking and smoking things in your units much worse than that so you needn’t spend a bunch of cash on remediation  .