Real Estate Investing :Got Asbestos? Get Rid of It.

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A girl can change her mind.

In 2008, I suggested to homebuyers and sellers alike that if they suspect they have asbestos in their home, it’s probably better to leave it alone if it appears to be in good condition and isn’t in a living area.



Two recent sales completely reversed my thinking on this.  Specifically, it was the mortgage lenders my buyers were using.Two houses. Two different lenders. Both lenders required removal before closing.

When lenders have the money that the buyers need to close, the only opinion that matters is theirs. One loan was FHA, which is picky about things like this so I knew ahead of time it would be an issue. The lender would not permit closing until the asbestos was removed - in this case it was an asbestos wrapped furnace that didn’t function anyway.

But the other loan was conventional with the buyers putting 20% down. This lender required removal on small areas of asbestos-wrapped ductwork in an unfinished basement. I have never had a lender on a conventional mortgage require asbestos removal.

Which makes me wonder - will more lenders in the future require asbestos removal regardless of condition and location? 

Home buyers ask me, “When I go to sell, will buyers require that I remove it?” Maybe. But now I see the bigger issue is that some lenders won’t lend on houses where there is a disclosed asbestos problem. So your buyer may not care…but the man with the money may and that’s what matters.

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