Realtors

Any real estate deal carries with it possible legal issues. Both sellers and buyers might be willing to bring a lawsuit against an agent or broker. These suits have basis in common law, statutory law, or both. Motivations or reasons for the suits range from nondisclosure or misrepresentation, discrimination, and breach of fiduciary duty.

When a vibrant housing sector combines with a society that is increasingly litigious, then you have the breeding grounds for many lawsuits. If a broker doesn’t recommend the right specialists or steps to deal with problems like mold, asbestos, radon or formaldehyde, etc., then lawsuits can be the result. Many states and municipalities have lead-based paint disclosure laws. These stipulate that real estate agents let renters or buyers know of any known issues in a structure, as well as what to do about it. An information pamphlet is provided, and certain clauses are included in all contracts.

Property buyers have 10 days to inspect for environmental issues. Realtors need to know what problems and issues exist in their area and stay up to date with the latest information. They should also know when to advise that environmental testing be done for pollutants and allergens. While having a regular home inspector look over a residence is always a good idea, they are not always personally qualified to do environment testing specifically.

Homeowners

For homeowners, the main environmental consideration is the health and safety of their family and the key influences most likely to have an impact are mold, radon, formaldehyde, lead-based paint, electromagnetic radiation and water quality. When buying a house, it is recommended that tests be carried out for all of these factors.

Once the home is inhabited, issues such as allergens and pollutants assume more importance, as does carbon monoxide and other air quality issues. The health impact of these can be serious, often including susceptibilities to allergies, asthma and other respiratory ailments and, in the most severe cases, causing brain damage and even death.

Landlords

Indoor environmental issues are possible dangers in structures that house more than one family, like apartments or condominiums, even standalone homes with a basement apartment. Older structures can have lead paint, asbestos, and other construction elements that are not in use in modern building projects. Bacteria are also an issue of concern, as aging or substandard water and ventilation systems can carry fungi and Legionella. Other indoor risks include fiberboard and glue leaking formaldehyde; gas dryers, gas stoves, and space heaters providing nitrous dioxide; carbon monoxide; pesticides; and radon.

Environmental issues can be a very negative force on rental income. Certain issues make tenants bolt for other properties, and finding new tenants is very challenging, even if the actual issues were dealt with. Owners of rental properties might burn a lot money to deal with a potential issue before it turns into an actual one.

One increasing tragedy that landlords around the nation are dealing with is illegal methamphetamine makers that run a lab in a residence for a while, contaminating the property, and then moving. Meth is made with very dangerous chemicals, and the process of making meth also produces chemicals. These wind up seeping into infrastructure like walls, ducts, ceilings, and floors, often staying there for years into the future. When these chemicals are found later on, residents file lawsuits against the landlords when it turns out prior use as a meth lab was not disclosed.

Businesses

The environmental issues that can arise at retail spaces can be a mix of currently sold products as well as anything that happened previously at that location. Higher levels of environmental risk exist for retail locations that deal with large volumes of things like car batteries, solvents, paints, fertilizers, pesticides and petroleum products. These locations are at higher risk than electronic stores or movie theaters. Property owners need to know what has transpired previously on a piece of property, since results or consequences could be their responsibility as a current owner.

Commercial and office buildings can suffer the same issues as residential properties. Also, an older building can have specific issues like poisonous PCBs from elevator hydraulic fluid. Medical waste can impact hospitals and doctor offices. Even golf courses can have issues, as pesticides and fertilizers might be all over the property.

Every property owner should know the history of the land they own and understand the risks and consequences that legacy issues might present in the future.

Contractors

Contractors have a lot of responsibilities in their line of work, and these include being careful in their selection of construction materials as well as following best building practices. However, contractors must also deal with external issues. Stormwater runoff is one such issue, and among the biggest environmental problems that construction sites must face. Water runoff is a primary contributor to the contamination of surface water, and this can include anything from construction refuse and disturbed soil to oil and diesel products as well as cleaning products, solvents and paints. Surface water contamination and stormwater runoff are growing concerns of the United States EPA, and individual states are prompted to manage stormwater management through the Clean Water Act. Contractors working on projects must also be wary of breaching tanks, pipes, and other underground utility installations when digging for building foundations and the like.
Another area of concern to contractors is the risk of disturbing asbestos or lead-based paint during renovations. If the atmosphere is polluted by either of those contaminants, it will be necessary to take extensive (and expensive) precautions to protect employees and the public.