Realtor · Atlanta, GA · Member since 2018 · 32 posts · 14 votes
hello, looking for experts opinion. We want to place an offer on a house that is priced about 50% below it’s market because it has mold in the basement. We didnt have time to bring a mold mitigation contractor to look at it yet but from what we can see, at least 2 rooms and a bathroom in the basement will have to be demolished or gutted and redone after fixing the mold issue. After researching the cost of mold mitigation, i am estimating a worst case scenario of $35-$40k just to fix this problem. We still have to remodel the rest of the house and deal with rotten window and baseboards etc in some rooms on the main level. It appears owners neglected the house completely inside and out.
Has anyone here dealt with extensive mold in bigger higher end properties and what advises or experiences can you share? As an invistor, how would this mold issue affect the sale of the house in the future?
Contractor · Oceanside, CA · Member since 2018 · 17 posts · 30 votes
8y
Hi Sara Als. ,
I used to work for a resto/construction contractor, lots of mold and asbestos abatements. If it’s done right, it will be expensive as you’ve already seen, and rightly so. From an operations stand point, make sure the quote from the contractor includes — full containment and HEPA filtered negative air movers that ideally can exhaust to the exterior, manometer with print out logs documenting the containment’s negative pressure throughout the mitigation, full removal of affected materials (drywall, baseboard), (wood framing can sometimes be sanded and then sprayed with a spor/fungicide), and finally an *inspection by a third party environmental hygienist for air clearance*. Once you have clearance docs in hand you can move forward with build back.
From a resell/investor standpoint having everything documented is important if/when you list your disclosures.
If you have any other questions or further details on the process just let me know!