Would you buy a Multi-Family with a lead water supply line?

[Account Closed]

Sorry for the double post, but I couldn't edit my last one.

Would you purchase a multi family that had a lead water main if you didn't have the budget to replace it? The estimate to replace the one in my situation is around 15k. Can't decide if this is a deal breaker for me.

[James McCreary]

Hi Adam, I'm unsure of where you are based or considering for the purpose of this post, but lead pipes have been and continue to be a major issue. To start off, I'd recommend reading the following article from 2016: https://www.eenews.net/stories/1060039790. As a few notes to highlight from that, D.C. is a bastion of lead pipes. There were some public programs, but the private side of the pipe was left to the property owner to pay, arguably understandably so. 

I've done a lot of work in water treatment and purification, and lead is definitely not something you want to mess with. The EPA has specified levels to have as close to absolute zero as possible in drinking water (the EPA guidelines apply to municipalities of certain sizes, but not private wells, for example). Lead is that serious.

While replacing the pipe, at an associated high price, may be an option. As @Leo Poon stated, you can never guarantee the quality of the water in transit between the municipal treatment plant and your home, even if you do have copper pipes. Also, please do not do partial lead pipe replacement. You can knock off corroded parts of the pipe and send that straight to your drinking glass.

I'd recommend getting a water filter at the point-of-use (e.g. your sink) that is certified (by, for example, NSF) for lead removal. Then you can rest assured that lead is not entering your body!