Mold? What do I do with that?

Mold, oh my, what the heck do I do about that? We all know mold is nasty, icky and smells bad as well as looks really bad. But, did you know that some of it is very toxic and bad for your health if it remains in your home and is allowed to grow?

For example there is a mold that is black in color that is called Toxic Black Mold. Toxic black mold can cause many health problems in humans such as allergies, irritation and uncommonly invasive diseases. Wow, all of that from a mold? Yep!

When you are buying or selling a home and you notice a little bit of mold don't take it lightly. Don't think I can just spray some bleach on it and it is all good, that may be fine for certain types of mold in very small areas but when it comes to your health, your home and the environment you need to have it professionally removed. 

I have found a very good site that helps you determine how to check and remove mold when it is found. http://www.toxic-black-mold-info.com/moldhealth.htm .

Please refer to a mold removal specialist if you discover mold in your home, I am not a mold specialist and do not claim to be, but I do want to give you some things to think about from a real estate angle when you are in the market to buy or sell your home.

Fist of all I can tell you that every buyer I have had that has viewed a home and we see mold in the basement or the bathroom has turned and walked straight out of the house, without exception. Why do they do this? Well, the very first thing they say is "I have allergies and I do not want to live in a home that has mold." The second thing that comes out of their mouth is "it is really expensive to remove mold".

It is true, if you let mold grow in your home and let it cover a large area it can be very expensive to remove, depending on how much you have it could cost you in the hundreds of thousands of dollars to remove. So the short of the story is a buyer is not even going to consider a home that has mold that has not been removed by a professional!

That is fine, I don't blame them at all, but what about someone who wants to sell their home and in the process they decide to take care of some water damage in some part of their home and when the remove the tile or wall board they discover their is mold? What do you do? From a real estate perspective this is what I recommend my clients to do.

1. Contact a Mold specialist company ( they will assess the mold, have it tested for type and suggest the best method to remove the mold, make sure they check the entire home for signs of mold you never know where the spores can travel to.)
2. Have all of the mold removed by a professionally licensed company that adherer to the environmental standards for removing and disposing the mold.
3. Disclose on the Sellers Disclosure Addendum of your contract that you had mold and it was removed according to environmental standards, have proof of removal from the company you choose to remove and dispose of the mold for you. Also have documentation of your home being inspected for mold after you have it removed. Some companies offer a one or two year warranty.