How is lead paint effecting your area?

Question

Matt Lefebvre · Answer

@John McKinnon I'm intimately familiar with this law... it was a huge hot button issue in NH last year.  A lot of large landlords I know, testified to the State Congress against the initial proposal and ultimately it got boiled down into its current form, but it still has somewhat changed the perception in the market.

Here's my two cents.  First off, its always been a law (since 1978) that you have to abate lead paint if children test lead positive above the threshold.  That's been the spirit of the law to ensure kids don't get lead poisoning.  For reference, the bill is SB247 if you want to read the full text of it.  However, the trigger events for this have become easier to have occur (they lowered the required lead level from 10 micrograms per Liter to 7.5 micrograms per Liter in a child's blood) and universal screening was implemented, causing the number of tests to go up.  This translates to a perfect storm causing a spike in proof that lead poisoning is happening and by design, should be increasing the number of lead abatement orders issued on properties.

With that being said, its not all doom and gloom.  Let's be real... as much as the government wants to make lead paint disappear tomorrow, there's absolutely no way to make it go away tomorrow, next year, next decade, or maybe even in the next century.  The sheer cost associated with lead abatement at the scale required to ensure ALL lead paint disappears from housing would be astronomical and would bankrupt almost every landlord in the state if an order was handed down to make it all happen.  The vast majority of rental properties in major cities in NH (Manchester, Nashua, Concord, Rochester, Lebanon, Keene, etc.) are built pre-1978 and in many cases, pre-1920.  There is some value to buildings being sold that are lead free and have certificates showcasing that, however, that's still a rarity.

Property management is really a risk management business.  As long as you understand how lead poisonings occur and you take steps to reduce potential lead hazards, you take a lot of the risk out of lead paint and create a safer environment for children.  Its rarely economically feasible to fully abate a building... but what it is feasible to do is spend a few hundred dollars or thousand dollars extra per "turnover" and deal with high risk areas.  Triple coating windowsills in a lead encapsulating paint... repainting "friction points" (think doorjambs, old cabinet doors, etc.)... repainting old wooden porches/decks... all of these things can reduce the potential lead hazard without breaking the bank.

Obviously the 100% safest option is to fully abate, but the costs associated with it aren't always feasible when it doesn't make you any extra rent, barely adds value to the sale of the building, and isn't a requirement by the state.

I'm not an expert on the law... always seek advice from a lawyer if you want the 100% legal and correct answer... but this is what I've seen from personal experience and from experience with property managers I know and work with.  I could go on and on about this for hours... but if you have more specific questions give me a shout and I'd be happy to talk more about it or direct you to people more knowledgeable than me.

Nathan Gesner · Answer

@Russell Brazil is correct. Buy properties built after 1978 and you'll never have to worry about it.

If you buy properties that may have lead paint, make the sale contingent on testing and abating before you close. If the seller refuses, don't buy the property or make abatement a part of your purchase cost.

Chris Luksha · Answer

@John McKinnon lead is a big deal yes, but as @Matt Lefebvre pointed out, it's a manageable one.  I can say for sure the the cost goes up considerably when you are forced to abate.  There is considerably more expense in abating because you have to deal with every item found and they will find many, and much more liability and precautions that must be taken. (decon units, showers, portable bathroom, endless reports to write, etc.)

The key is to treat things that cause the most dust or have the most attraction to kids, every time you turn over an apartment. Especially if you have an apartment that is appealing to a family of some kind.

Before reading the simple steps, know that I too am not a lawyer, or state inspector, risk assessor, etc.  I am giving basic ideas. If you want exactly what you need, you should call a risk assessor for each property.

Some simple steps you can do help;

• Go take the one day RRP course nearest you so you can better understand the dangers and precautions needed.  You can be creative from there.
• Call a risk assessor. This could cost a few hundred dollars per unit or per building but you will get an itemized list of what is wrong and what you can do to prevent future issues.
• Another option for encaspulating your indoor window sills and aprons would be to just replace them. Especially if the sills are below 4 feet. Give yourself about 45 minutes to figure out he best way with the first window, the about 15-20 minutes each window once you have it figured out.  you can encapsulate the rest of the window trim, but you have technically eliminated the chewable threat.
• If you have wooden window sashes, you really should put replacement windows in. When you do that, you can save yourself trouble down the line by covering the inside casing with 1/4" luann prior to installing the replacement. (This means measuring the replacement 1/2" smaller in both directions, and may also require a permit because you are technically changing the size of your window.  But if you talk to your building inspector and let him or her know what you are doing, it probably wont.)
• If you are replacing windows, you should be sure to either put aluminum coil stock around the exterior trim or wet scrape and repaint the exterior trim.  You probably had to remove a storm window and that left behind a ton of lead paint chips.
• Wherever possible, if you have old solid doors that you know were hand made, covered in lead paint, just take them out where possible.  For example, exchange the closet doors with bifold louvered doors. That also gives you a chance to box in the old trim.  In other words, the trim may still be there underneath but no kid will ever be able to chew on it.
• Put quarter round over all the tops of your baseboard, This does not remove lead, but it greatly hinders a child from chewing on it.
• If you have carpets in the apartment, get rid of them.  They collect lead dust.  
• If you want to make your tenants feel special while also helping them out, buy them a HEPA home vacuum and offer to replace the filters every quarter or something like that.  Make it a welcome package or "Thank you for being a long time tenant" gift. However you want.

None of these things are guaranteed to prevent anything, just ideas to get you thinking "How can I help my tenants and help myself at the same time?" Please remember you need to get yourself trained in RRP or hire a licensed professional to do any work that involves window/door replacement, or disturbing more than 6sq feet indoors and 20sq feet outdoors. This keeps everyone safe and trash properly disposed of.

Also any of these items have to be for the purpose of remodeling or renovating.  If your intent is to actually abate the lead, then you are required by law to hire an abatement professional.  So put in a place a "Turnover Renovation and Upkeep Plan" that includes items to help you prevent future poisoning, and stick to it.

I would copy and paste Matt's last paragraph here.  I am not a risk assessor or lawyer, but I have personal experience and other resources so drop a line if you want to talk.

Chris

Russell Brazil · Answer

Pretty simple solution....buy properties built after 1978.

Derreck Wells · Answer

@Axel Ragnarsson I just skimmed the NH laws. While what I found doesn't say a landlord HAS to delead like they do in MA, I did find this part that basically says that if you get sued and did any work that disturbed lead paint, you're screwed. This would include replacing windows, window sills, aprons, doors, etc.. If a professional tenant figures that out, it would be a shit-show for the landlord.

Owners of pre-1978 rental housing and childcare facilities shall take reasonable care to prevent exposure to, and the creation of, lead hazards. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the mere presence of a lead base substance shall not constitute negligence on the part of an owner of any dwelling. To establish negligence on the part of an owner, the plaintiff in a civil suit shall demonstrate actual injury caused by the lead base substance. Evidence of actions taken or not taken by the owner of a pre-1978 rental property or childcare facility in compliance with applicable public health laws and regulations concerning lead may be admissible evidence of reasonable care or negligence. Remedial actions taken by a property owner after a lead exposure has occurred shall not be admissible evidence for purposes of establishing liability. Evidence of a tenant's disturbance of painted surfaces containing lead paint also shall be admissible evidence. In addition, the mere presence of a lead base substance in a dwelling shall not by itself violate any warranty of habitability.  130-A:18 Civil Suits. –

Axel Ragnarsson · Answer

@Derreck Wells Just an initial reaction to your post - the lead paint laws are significantly more strict in MA than they are in NH right now. I believe what @Matt Lefebvre and @Chris Luksha were suggesting to the original poster is that the best way to approach the broad lead paint issue is to try and take steps to mitigate the chances that it will become a problem to potential tenants. As @Chris Luksha mentioned, be sure to hire licensed professionals to do work that exceeds state requirements or if you want to truly have an abatement done. As for your story about the owner you know in MA who got sued, that's pretty crazy... NH laws have not become that stringent yet.

Derreck Wells · Answer

First, I'm licensed in MA, not NH, so I don't know the NH laws that well. But, I can say that everything I've read here would be illegal in MA, and is probably illegal in NH. You CANNOT preform lead abatement unless you're licensed to do so. It would be flagged as Unauthorized Deleading (UD) and you wouldn't be able to get a lead certificate on the unit. You can renovate following RRP rules, but not to specifically remove lead paint. Painting over windows and doors doesn't work and isn't considered lead safe. There are specific laws regarding each component that requires deleading. You're only course of action is to get a lead inspection done and hire a professional that knows the laws to delead the units. It's not as expensive as you may think. Assume $3-$5k per unit, counting the exterior as a unit.

In MA you now have 90 days after closing on a property to delead in order to avoid liability. If you don't delead in the first 3 months, a tenant from 10 years ago can claim they got lead poisoning in that building and sue and you will be held liable. It's not even remotely fair, but it's how MA is trying to get all rentals lead safe. I don't know if NH has a similar law, but this is why hiring licensed professionals is critical these days. Owners are losing millions in lawsuits, I personally know one owner that lost the building to the professional tenant that moved in and found out there was no lead cert on file. She sued after living there for a month claiming her kids got high blood lead levels from the unit. In reality they probably got it in past apartments, but she won and now owns the building.

Matt Lefebvre · Answer

@Russell Brazil @Nathan G. this advice makes sense traditionally, except in the market that @John McKinnon is looking in.  We live in a state where the big multifamily construction boom happened a hundred years ago.  The vast majority of properties in the biggest cities are built pre-1978 and simply saying to buy "post 1978" properties doesn't make sense for an old New England state where new construction costs are extremely high and the number of old buildings is plentiful.  Most sellers simply don't accept offers where a buyer is intending on performing a lead paint inspection and certainly don't accept offers with a buyer that has factored in abatement cost into a purchase.

According to an ACS Housing report for Manchester, NH (the largest city in the state with the most potential rental properties) approximately 70% of all buildings were constructed prior to 1978.  Most of those post-1978 buildings, are single family homes being built on the outskirts of the city.

Further, if you run the numbers on multifamily sales that took place on MLS in Manchester, there were 286 total sales in 2018 so far.  Of those 286 sales, only 14 of them (less than 5%) were with buildings built post-1978, 13 of which were duplexes and 1 of which was a 6 unit.  The reality of the market does not allow the vast majority of investors to purchase post-1978 buildings and simple advice to not buy pre-1978 buildings isn't feasible.

The steps that @Chris Luksha outlined are simple ways to reduce your risk by a huge factor that don't require professional abatement.

How is lead paint effecting your area?

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