I contacted the listing agent to ask if there had been any previous testing done on the property. After she had quizzed the seller, the response was “They did not do any testing when they bought the house. Their inspector said that since the home had a walkout basement, there would be no radon issues.” When I got done laughing, I contacted the buyer and he ordered the tests.  Inspector Whitbeck did the test and guess what? The results came in at a level of 14.2 pCi/l. The EPA recommends that the level be no higher than 3.9 pCi/l.  As a result, the buyer requested that the seller install a radon mitigation system to lower the levels and provide safety for the new buyer and his family.

Having a walkout basement does not make any difference in whether or not a home has radon! Common sense and science tell us that if radon comes out of the soil, when a house is built on top of that soil, radon can get into the property through the floors or cracks in the floors. Some migt think that a walkout basement has more ventilation since it has a patio door instead of smaller windows. What difference would that make? None unless you left the door open 24/7.  Duh! Whoever that inspector was that told the seller this should be the one who pays for this new system! This was a costly problem for that seller!

I always recommend that my clients educate themselves on radon and it’s dangers. While there are many arguments on radon and if it is really a problem, the fact is that if you have it in your home and decide to sell, you may have to pay the cost (around $1000-1500) to install a mitigation system. Better to test and ask the home seller to foot the bill than to not test and have to pay later!

Worried about radon or other home inspection issues? Call me at 719-264-7777 so we can address all of your questions.

Radon is a major issue in the sale of homes these days. Lots of buyers are now testing for and finding radon levels that are higher than the EPA standard. When a high radon reading is found, the buyer asks the seller to install a mitigating system. These systems can cost between $800 and $1000.

Recent Issue

I recently had a transaction where radon was found (suburban Aurora, CO–nowhere hear the foothills). They buyer naturally asked the seller to provide a system to mitigate the high radon level. The seller declined the request saying that she had already come down enough on the price and would not pay for that item. The bad news is that now the buyer has walked from the deal and the seller will have to disclose to all potential buyers that Radon has been found in the home. Most likely, they will have to install the system.

The key issue here is that the seller might have had a test done prior to listing the property for sale. This way, the high level could have been found and the system would have been installed. The seller would have then included this cost in the sales price to the buyer. They also might have had a low test reading which could have been provided to the buyer at the time of contract. This would have caused the buyer not to test and ask for a system, saving everyone a lot of headaches.

How to interpret the results

The readings can vary according to weather conditions (pressure changes, I think) and other factors. The only way to get a true reading is to do a long term test over a period of weeks or months. I feel that when the reading is high as it has been in several homes I have owned, the seller should just go ahead and install a system.

A reading of 128 (EPA recommends no higher than 4.0) is not going to vary low enough to not mitigate. A reading of 4.6 certainly could dip below 4.0 over a longer period of time. Home sellers need to understand that the days of skating by with a buyer who does not test are over.

Home inspectors now have high quality testing equipment in their possession and they pitch the radon inspection to buyers as a way to increase their profits on inspections.

The easy solution!

Sellers need to go ahead and test prior to marketing their homes for sale and avoid any problems at time of inspection.

Feel free to comment below or contact me for a list of radon testing or mitigation contractors.

719-264-7777