Radon in your home is a colorless and odorless gas that can be harmful in high concentrations. Radon is typically found in higher concentrations in the mountain states such as Colorado. Radon in your home can cause lung cancer with prolonged exposure. Home owners should be aware about Radon and take any precautions to have their home tested and mitigated if necessary.
For Real Estate transactions we recommend that all home buyers have a Radon test performed during their inspection period. The inspection period is specified in the purchase contract and is usually during the first 10 to 15 days once the property is under contract. The reason we recommend this is because Radon relates directly to your health and you can’t put a price on that.
If the radon in your home is above 4.0 pCi/L, the EPA recommends taking action to mitigate the radon levels. By having a radon test done during an inspection period, a home buyer can object to unacceptable radon levels. The buyer can then request that the seller pay for the radon mitigation system to be installed.
You can reduce radon in your home by installing a radon mitigation system which usually runs about $1200 or less for a quality system. A seller may refuse to pay all of the cost to have the radon mitigation system installed. By having the radon test performed during the inspection period this provides the buyer with additional leverage to negotiate that the seller pay for all or part of the radon mitigation system.
Radon Testing can cost anywhere from $50 to $150 depending on if you want do it yourself or have a professional do it. If you do it yourself you can get a testing kit from a home improvement store and mail your test kit to a lab for analysis. You need to deploy the test kit in the home for at least 48 hours. Ensure you start your radon testing as soon as possible to allow enough time to deploy and get test results back before the inspection objection deadline.
Here is a great brochure on Dealing with Radon in Real Estate Transactions
Here is a list of Certified Radon Mitigation Contractors
Additional Radon Information – Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment
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