This can make getting an offer downright hard to do. Though, I think that it is a good way of weeding out the people who are not serious about buying your home. But, the primary concern is financing. Many lenders are wary due to the same considerations homeowners contend with concerning asbestos.
This is because the industry has taken steps to make the presence of asbestos known to all the parties down the road or line. Like, down the line is your best and wisest course of action. That’s right — you do want to present these facts.
This is called SELLING smart — to the right buyers. If you are “smart,” you know that selling a house with asbestos will require a bit of knowhow — plus a bit of wit. You’ll be right.
Should You Fix Asbestos Issues Before Selling?
There are pros and cons to deciding whether you want to deal with asbestos issues before you sell your property, and each should be considered fairly. The major pro to removal is that the value of the property will likely increase. A property that is free from hazardous materials, like asbestos, will likely be more appealing to buyers on the market. Therefore, the whole process of selling the property could be much easier; and the price for which the property sells may be quite lucrative too. A lot of buyers will probably know about the hazards of asbestos or they can read about it in full here.
The only obvious cons, which actually aren’t that obvious unless you think about them deeply, are a) the general costs of the asbestos abatement (which can get quite high—to be discussed further below) depending on the area being mitigated and b) the potential duration of any abatement you decide to have (which could be long—abatement companies must be meticulous in their work to ensure a safe home and to ensure that they follow asbestos), again mitigating the area that must be negatively affected.
The first con may not be appealing to homeowners who may be financially stretched in terms of being able to afford general costs for repairs or do not have any flexibility in terms of how they can manage the price or responding to potential negotiations in dealing with buyers. In general, it may be best whenever you are selling a home to have a backup stash of cash ready in case you need it. The backup stash effectively protects you if anything major comes up. Of course, too, if you are selling your home, then the area is right, and the idea of having asbestos removal is probably too ridiculous, so you can leave it to buyers to deal with themselves. One or two buyers likely will be fully aware and hate the idea, but you cannot stand back to satisfy everyone. The other con is about time. Homeowners should consider how much time they have already; and of course, whether the cost and time of doing remediation, getting the building space looked over, and having it tested are actually well worth money and the associated problem. If you, potential homeowners, are simply “not batting any of this” anymore, then pass your abatement onto a buyer at your costs per square foot. Make sure that your realtor or buyer’s realtor that you are required to know legal law about Illinois requires that you and the other party to discuss this. Of course, prices can always be negotiated and negotiated lower, but the buyer, of course, must know what is up. In this kind of instance, you give the buyer the right to leave or decide as to whether they are buying into a new problem. Decisions to ensure that buildings are free of asbestos always depend on one’s personal situation in selling a home, financial leverage, and general, overall life goals. Homeowners are advised to do their due diligence to determine what step they should take next. They should also talk to professionals to get a better idea of exactly what is going on.
Financing a House with Asbestos in Washington
Would-be home buyers in Washington State have a complex set of financing steps to follow if they plan to buy a house with asbestos lurking in the ducts or the insulation.
That’s because many banks or lenders have very detailed provisions in their lending rules about houses with asbestos. At many banks, you may need to have an inspection performed, you may need to submit a plan for how you are going to remediated the asbestos, and then, only maybe, after all of that preparation, will the bank give you a loan.
And because that asbestos clause is written into so many banking provisions, you may also need to look for loan opportunities from issuers that are not the Big Five. You should expect, instead, to have to veer off the main drive and onto a sideroad. That could be an abnormal bank, a vendor finance deal, an assumable mortgage already tied to the property, your aunt, your uncle, or, increasingly in today’s market, mom and dad.
There is nothing “bad” about needing to negotiate these lender provisions for the types of loans being offered if the property contains asbestos.
And why is that? Like you, the banks might be scared of asbestos.
So it’s evident: you should have your asbestos story written in first-person form so that you can tell the bank what you have, what you are going to do about it, and when, and how. That way you can plan to comply with a clause before that clause surprises you.
The Impact of Asbestos on Property Value
Asbestos was popular as a building material because it’s resistant to heat and fire. But it’s that same durability that makes asbestos dangerous to our health. The presence of asbestos can devalue a home substantially: enough buyers have heard about the risks that it makes them exceptionally wary. This article is intended to help you get a handle on just how much the presence of a problem with asbestos might affect what you’ll have to ask for your property.
Deciding on an asking price for a home will have to be based on the amount of asbestos and probable remediation cost and should follow the professional inspection of the property. Let the buyer have the results of that inspection. What would your reaction be if you read an ad for a house and the ad stated something such as, “the property contains asbestos and the owner is eager for someone to take it off his hands?” You would likely say, “Next ad, please!” On the other hand, were the ad to say, “Yes, the house contains asbestos, but I’ve had the property inspected and it appears . . .” you would be much less concerned.
Again, the actual amount to ask should be based on current conditions and will also have to be determined based on the geographical location of the home, the home’s competition, and the amount prospective buyers may expect or demand off the asking price. The bottom line is that you will very likely have to offer your home for far less than you would a similar home with no asbestos problem. You might also want to consider offering to accept an amount of money from the approximate cost of the remediation you’ll know that you won’t have and/or provide part or all of that money for a home warranty. Any incentive is an incentive for a sale.
Asbestos Disclosure Requirements When Selling a House
If you are selling a house and you are aware of any asbestos issues, you are required under law to disclose that information to potential buyers or risk significant legal action. However, you should want to be transparent with potential buyers about the presence of asbestos because of the serious health effects a person may experience (including lung cancer and mesothelioma,) as well as the fact that asbestos is a hazard that can only be found in older standing buildings.
Transparency is important in real estate transactions for reasons on both sides of the transaction. For homebuyers, transparency is important so that they can know what they purchase and the various safety and hazard implications that may result from that purchase. In order to avoid any asbestos problems in the present or future, a buyer should have all of the information he or she needs upfront, so that they can live in their house to the best of their ability and desire, as well as getting a return on investment. For a seller, it is in your interest to be transparent with potential buyers about a hazard that is present before selling for financial reasons. Once you express that you were aware of a hazard once the transaction has fully closed, you may have to give the original buyer a larger sum of money as a refund. If explaining that you did not know about a hazard makes you out to be a liar, that characterization/reputation may impact your ability to find other eligible buyers that may want to purchase a property that you may or may not own.
When you sell a home, fill out a document that contains the description and location of your home that is selling, and in that description you may provide useful notes that introduce details surrounding the general condition of your home (specifically for issues you have to disclose, such as location, the specific condition, and whether any treatment measures have been deployed). To disclose whether or not asbestos is present in your home, you may write your home’s description in the seller’s note or on the home’s bill, respectively. You may wish to receive a printed report stating whether you have asbestos in your home to deliver to a potential buyer, and the receipt given should clearly express whether you have asbestos anywhere within your home or not. By placing an emphasis on transparency, sellers command the appropriate legal shields from liabilities and disclose properly to buyers to make a more successful deal (hopefully to buyers that are better suited and higher quality, too).
Understanding Asbestos and Its Risks
Asbestos is a mineral that is found in nature. Up until the 1980s, it was used extensively in the building trade, as it provided good insulation and was fireproof. This means that there is a risk that asbestos may be present in virtually any material if your home was built before the 1980s, including insulation and roofing, and stuck to the underside of floor tiles.
However, all use of asbestos has ceased because it is now linked to a number of severe health issues. People who have come into contact with asbestos are more likely to develop a range of conditions later in life. These include lung cancer and mesothelioma—a rare type of cancer that affects the lining of the lungs.
For this reason, if you want to sell a house that has asbestos or you think may have asbestos in it, it’s in your interests to have it removed first.
In the first instance, you are legally obliged to do so. Selling a house with asbestos in it—even if you don’t tell the buyer that the asbestos is there—is against the law and will result in prosecution. The courts will almost certainly find against you in any issue related to this type of case. This will result in a hefty financial bill at the end of the proceedings.
Doing this will also give a mortgage advisor or lender more confidence that, in a worst-case scenario, the lender can make their money back from the forced sale of the home. Ensuring safety and compliance not only protects the health of future residents but also contributes to a smoother and more successful real estate transaction. “
Understanding the asbestos every which way is a wise move for homeowners planning to sell. Why? Because if this much-maligned material is known to be in the building, it can and will put a dent in the process. For more years than I can count, asbestos was considered the perfect partner to home construction because of its fire-resistant properties.
THEN WE FOUND OUT HOW BAD IT WAS FOR OUR HEALTH
Today, home shoppers are hip vampires to homes that are of a certain age, and as such, many a finicky buyer will not-so-politely decline to put in a purchase offer. As a result, homes that have asbestos, or even those that may have it, will force most wanna-be sellers to rethink any kind of pre-listing strategy.
You should be doing a deep dive/research on what is and what is not the right way to position a home that genuinely has an asbestos problem. You don’t want to be the property owner that ticks off the new home buyer. Likewise, you should have had a clear conversation with your real estate pro on what the local strategy might be on asbestos issues. Hopefully, you have or had a side chat with your real estate agent regarding how asbestos fits into the current state of your local housing market — the good, the bad, and the oh so ugly.
What will your target audiences think or believe about your property? Likewise, you must come to terms with any all all local, state, and federal laws regarding asbestos in a home’s construction and when and how it should be or might be removed. Do the words, “Thou shall disclose, disclose, or disclose..” ring a bell?
Get those dang nasty swatches tested. Make the call to an asbestos abatement company or professional. Then wait to see what happens when the mail arrives from the testing lab you sent it to. I hope you like to read, because there will be some to do. Make sure you are sitting down when you read the test results.
The test results will likely be the confirmation you need. You likely won’t want to be standing up if the test results come back as 2% or greater, the level at which most experts and a few government officials will say the substance was used as part of a mixture in common building materials.
You will need to bring attention to the problem to some extent before listing the home. Those looking at your property cannot form an opinion about the aesthetics of the property as what they perceive as being complete. If you undertake this strategy, please beware that this strategy will be a voluntary to-do on you. You, therefore, should have a solid and warm relationship with the main listing agent — you know the one that has some knowledge of how things at the house are to transpire and to which the building department team (the “inspectors”) can talk. If the real estate transaction has been growing as a value proposition, sealing the deal will require your being a beacon of communication and a forceful, yet friendly, dictator of proactivity and action. Many homeowner wannabes will appreciate the facts and the why you have made the choices you have, despite scores of dumb comments along the track of the sales journey.