Dear Jill,

I would like to purchase a fixer-upper and do the remodeling myself. How do I know if the home I want to purchase has lead based paint?

Buying homes in order to rehab them is a great idea and the advantages of doing it yourself are even better. I commend you on your initiative and hope the project goes well for you. Unfortunately, remodel jobs can often lead to the release of lead based paint so it is important to find out whether or not the home you want to purchase is "at risk".

Typically, any home built before 1978 is considered to be "at risk" for lead based paint so the first step in determining whether or not the home you want to buy has lead based paint is to find out the year in which it was built. Usually the realtor, if the house is listed, will have that information in the disclosure agreement. If the home was built before 1978 and there is no information about it having lead based paint it would behoove you to have an inspector come and swab the house for various signs of lead. If the report comes back with anything suspicious you can have the inspector do a more in depth test.

The Portland Real Estate Blog suggests checking into the EPA’s pamphlet on lead based paint.  Some real estate laws include a lead based paint disclosure and a provision in the earnest money, allowing the buyer to inspect for lead based paint but it is important to know the individual laws in your state before making your purchase.  Good Luck with the rehab!