We hate to break it to you, but if your home was built before 1980, it’s possible that your old floor tiles, textured paint, insulation, or roofing materials contained asbestos, which was used before there were any major regulatory actions against the naturally occurring mineral substance.
However, asbestos only poses a health threat when it’s disturbed and the fibers are released into the air, which could happen with a renovation or home improvement project. People still live in and buy older homes all the time. Just check the “Year Built” field on a sampling of homes for sale on any real estate website… you’ll see lots of listings were constructed before the ’80s.
If you confirm your home does have asbestos, it’s still perfectly legal to sell it. However, you must disclose it fully if you are aware of it, as failure to do so could result in a lawsuit. Alternatively, you could fix the problem professionally, and the scope and cost of that project could vary widely depending on what you’re dealing with.
Not sure how to proceed? We’ve extensively researched the topic and consulted with real estate professionals on the best course of action so you can make an informed choice either way.
What is asbestos?
When asbestos was first discovered and mined, it was hailed as a “miracle mineral.” It’s heat and flame resistant, among other properties, and was commonly used in homes as an insulator, and added to products like tiles to reinforce them. According to the Mesothelioma and Asbestos Awareness Center, “At the height of its use, asbestos could be found in over 3,000 consumer products.”
However, researchers came to realize that exposure to asbestos, when damaged or disturbed, can cause chest pain, shortness of breath, and abdominal pain, leading to longer term health problems such as mesothelioma and asbestosis.
Exposure to damaged asbestos is dangerous and can be health threatening, but you’ve likely been in buildings, churches, schools, or homes with disturbed asbestos in your lifetime.
Nowadays, there’s a ban on using asbestos in materials such as flooring felt, rollboard, and commercial paper, and other products. New uses of asbestos also have to go through testing and EPA approval before implementation. Use of asbestos today in new builds is restricted through the Toxic Substances Control Act, but you might be surprised to learn that it’s not completely banned.
Types of asbestos
If you want to drill down into the subject, asbestos is an umbrella term that encompasses several minerals. In all there are six varieties of asbestos:
- Chrysotile
- Amosite
- Crocidolite
- Anthophyllite
- Tremolite
- Actinolite
You are most likely to find chrysotile or amosite asbestos present in your home. These are typically used in walls, ceilings, roofs, floors, cement sheets, and insulation. Chrysotile and amosite fall into the serpentine asbestos mineral family, as opposed to amphibole asbestos.
Serpentine asbestos makes up about 95% of all asbestos used in the world, and while dangerous, is considered less so than amphibole asbestos. Research shows it takes less exposure to amphibole asbestos to cause cancer.
If you suspect your home has asbestos in it, don’t panic. When dealt with responsibly, you can safely take care of the issue and successfully sell your home.
Asbestos in your home
If you suspect there to be asbestos in your home, the worst thing you can do is try to deal with it yourself. There’s no DIY-ing when it comes to asbestos remediation or eradication. If your home was built before 1980, you might find asbestos in any of the following materials in your home:
- Insulation around pipes, boilers, or ducts
- Insulation around stoves or furnaces
- Floor tiles
- Roofing, shingles, or siding
- Materials on walls and ceilings, which includes soundproofing elements or decorative material
- Textured wall paints
Take a look at fixtures, finishes, or tiling in your home, noting if any of them seem worn or damaged. Asbestos is only harmful to you if it’s released into the air. When asbestos tiling, insulation, or siding is undamaged, it doesn’t pose a threat.
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