Need Advice on a House with a

Where do I even start?  We are making an offer on a beautiful brownstone with a reported mold problem.  I think it’s gone unchecked for a while.  There is obvious damage to many spots on the ceilings and walls.  The house is otherwise gorgeous and needs only minor upgrades. 

Any ballparks on what I am looking at in terms of cost to resolve this problem? Do I need a specific type of inspection to determine the extent of the issue or will a standard home inspection do?  I’m assuming that I would want to get more than one inspection done?  Finally are there specific licenses that contractors should have to deal with this issue specifically?

I’ll appreciate any insights!  Many thanks!

gigi.gaur

in Brownstoner Renovation 13 years and 9 months ago

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callalily | 13 years and 9 months ago

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How big is this mold problem in terms of square feet? Is it throughout the house or throughout all of one floor? If so, I would walk away. 

Also, are the walls sheet rock? Mold cannot grow on plaster. 

Most of the time, people’s fear of mold is overblown. But if you have huge amounts of it, and a leak that is still causing it, that’s quite a lot of damage to resolve. A regular home inspector and engineer should be able to evaluate how serious this is, and maybe give you an estimate of what caused it and how much it will cost to fix.

If you want more, Microecologies will do a mold inspection for about $2,000\. We used them. They are true experts and not flim-flam artists trying to sell remediation.

plgdude | 13 years and 9 months ago

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Iam not sure I would even make an offer til this issue is resolved. Has potential tobe a nightmaer

fastfreddy | 13 years and 9 months ago

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I would definitely get more than one opinion. Maybe you can even negotiate some kind of contingency in the contract and put some money in escrow to deal with the problem. If so, it should be a meaningful amount of money. Like $50,000.

brownstoner | 13 years and 9 months ago

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This has been touched on in a number of past Forum posts:

http://brownstoner.staging.wpengine.com/forum-archive/2010/08/possible-mold-p/

http://brownstoner.staging.wpengine.com/forum-archive/2007/05/mold-in-cellar/

http://brownstoner.staging.wpengine.com/forum-archive/2006/09/mold-removal/