ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, December 29, 1996 TAG: 9612310020
SECTION: HOMES PAGE: D-1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: HINTS FOR HOMEOWNERS
SOURCE: STEVE ELDER
For home buyers, home sellers and real estate professionals, there are new lead-based paint disclosure requirements which must be fulfilled before a contract for the sale or lease of a home can be ratified. Sept. 6 was the effective date for owners of a building containing more than four dwelling units. For the rest of the housing stock (buildings with four or fewer dwelling units), the requirement kicked in on Dec. 6.
The new requirements stem from the Residential Lead-Based Paint Hazard Reduction Act (a.k.a. Title X) passed by Congress in 1992. Title X affects housing built before 1978. Here is a review of the new rules and how they affect the real estate transaction process.
* Any known lead-based paint and lead-based paint hazards must be disclosed to prospective buyers or renters and any existing reports must be made available.
* Home buyers must be given 10 days to arrange and conduct a lead-based paint inspection or a risk assessment at their own expense.
* Notification and disclosure language must be incorporated into sales contracts and leasing agreements.
*Responsibility for compliance with Title X is shared by sellers, lessors, and real estate agents.
It is also important for everyone associated with the real estate transaction process to understand what Title X does not require. Sellers or landlords are not required to do testing or remove lead-based paint. Housing built after 1977 is not covered, because use of lead-based paint in residential housing was banned in 1978. ``Zero-bedroom'' units, such as lofts, efficiencies and dormitories are not covered, as well as leases under 100 days. Housing for the elderly or handicapped is not covered unless children live there.
Lead is a poison and can damage the nervous system and brain. Exposure can cause a variety of effects, such as behavioral and hearing problems, slowed growth and headaches. Children are particularly at risk because their bodies absorb more lead during the growing process and are more sensitive to its effects. They are also more vulnerable to lead-poisoning than adults because, as every parent knows, children do like to stuff things into their mouths and do not like to wash their hands.
Painted surfaces with flaking, chalking or peeling paint are potentially hazardous and should be cleaned or repaired. Most of the steps to reduce the risk are common sense procedures, such as washing children's hands, bottles, toys and pacifiers; keeping floors, window sills, and other surfaces clean; and wiping soil off your shoes before going into a house.. In other words, it's all the things your mother told you to do anyway.
Lead has been a known toxin for centuries. Its use was outlawed in the early 1700s when Virginia colonists became sick after imbibing rum shipped from Massachusetts in lead-lined kegs. The toxic effects of lead were described in 1700 by a Venetian physician, Bernardino Ramazzini, in his seminal work Diseases of Workers. Benjamin Franklin also commented on the effects of lead poisoning and wondered why they had not been brought to public attention.
It is interesting to note that the use of lead-based paint was banned in Australia as early as 1906, and by Germany in 1926. The learning curve on this side of the Atlantic seems to have been a little flatter: the United States didn't ban lead-based paint until 1978.
Lead was already being used as a paint base 2,000 years ago by the Romans. They also used it to fabricate eating utensils and wine goblets, and to line their aqueducts. Because of its minty flavor, lead was even used in powdered form as a wine sweetener.
The extensive and intensive contact with lead in food and drink is viewed by many historians as a direct cause of the decline of the Roman Empire. Those who subscribe to a cyclical view of history might find it thought-provoking that a number of sociologists have cited lead poisoning as a contributing factor to some of our present-day problems in education and child development.
LENGTH: Medium: 75 linesby CNB