Real Estate Agent's Café

Home Safety Tips and Green Insulation Alternatives

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Submitted by Mesothelioma Center

In the world of real estate, home construction and building, there are many things that should be taken into consideration. Many older homes could need repairs or additional renovations in areas that are susceptible to natural disasters. Having the assistance of a knowledgeable real estate agent can make this process smooth and simple.

The implementation of eco-construction and alternative energy solutions will play an important role in the transformation to a healthier and sustainable world. Building green will have profound impacts in many facets of life.

Asbestos Tips

Often appearing in roof shingles, popcorn ceilings, piping and insulation, asbestos became one of the most popular building applications of the 20^th century. One of the main things that can go unnoticed is taking simple precautions to avoid asbestos exposure.

 

If you locate any suspected asbestos in the home, most experts suggest leaving it un-disturbed until a home inspector can examine your property, take evaluations and determine the safest course of action. Sometimes the best action is no action at all. Disturbing asbestos in good condition may cause its fibers to be released into the air.

Exposure to damaged airborne asbestos fibers can lead to the development of a severe lung ailment known as mesothelioma. With a latency period that lasts from 20 to 50 years, it isn’t until the later stages of progression when physicians usually are able to accurately diagnose.

Depending on the condition of the asbestos, many experts feel it is better to seal it off than remove it. Licensed abatement contractors who remove asbestos, will be familiar with the regulations in protecting you and themselves from exposure to asbestos. They must wear protective equipment such as masks and gloves to avoid any exposure. The area is usually isolated from the rest of the house by shutting down ventilation systems and sealing them.

Green in the home

Many cities and states in the U.S. are pushing for green sustainable technologies to be utilized in the public and private sectors. Everyone strives for clean air to breathe and clean water to drink. Unfortunately, many modern conveniences increase pollution and health problems.

Implementing green methods of building can have positive environmental, health and economic benefits. These include:

• Conservation of natural resources
• Enhance air quality and protect ecosystems
• Energy sustainability
• Increase property value
• Improve quality of life
• Improvement of pulmonary and cardiac health
• Reduce waste

Green alternatives to asbestos include the use of lcynene foam, cotton fiber and cellulose. The use of cotton fiber foam has demonstrated to reduce energy costs by 25% per year.

Cotton fiber is quickly becoming a favorite for home builders and renovators. Made from recycled batted material, it is also treated to be fireproof.  These green options have the same beneficial qualities as asbestos, minus the health deteriorating and toxic components. Many locations throughout the United States are swiftly changing their construction practices to suit the environment and the health of human beings.

 

Also check out: Mesothelioma Web ( http://www.mesotheliomaweb.org ), one of the most comprehensive sites on asbestos and mesothelioma for over ten years, providing information and support to those who have been exposed to asbestos. Mesothelioma Web has achieved HON (Health On the Net) code approval; HON is a non-profit organization whose mission is to guide people to accurate medical information and expertise online and thereby to contribute to improved health care through patient empowerment and better informed health professionals.

Grand Slam!

This story was submitted by Chuck Lanyard, President, The Goldstein Group, New Jersey

We all have our favorite real estate stories and mine occurred nearly fifteen years ago.  I was contacted by two elderly brothers in their 80s who asked me to sell their dilapidated grocery store.  I explained to them that although the property was not in good shape, it had a desirable location. I convinced them to sign an exclusive listing with me for six months to lease the property, rather than sell it.

 

Thus began my first “Grand Slam” of my career. Within three months, I was able to lease the space to a national drug company who proceeded to improve the property with over $750,000 of improvements and they signed a multi-million dollar lease for 20 years. I then was able to secure for the owners a $1.5 million mortgage on the property, which of course, was tax deferred income.

 

Three years after the drug store opened, the national drug chain I put in place was bought out by an even larger national drug chain. The new drug chain decided that due to the fact they already had a successful store nearby, they did not have use for this location, and I negotiated a buy-out of the balance of the lease term for nearly ¾ of a million dollars. Within three months of finalizing the buy-out, I then sold the property to a medical group for nearly $1 million.  As a result of these transactions, my two elderly landlords reaped multi-million dollar profits.

 

Upon completion of all the transactions, my landlords asked me to come to their offices because they wanted to show their appreciation one last time. Although I had received commissions for the transactions, they wanted to do a little bit more for me. I had already alerted my Broker that I would probably receive additional compensation, so that everything would be on the up and up prior to my meeting with them, and not put my license in jeopardy.

 

These two brothers owned a produce company which had large refrigerator rooms at their place of business.  When I arrived, one of the brothers asked me to follow him into one of the large coolers at the back of the facility where he wanted to “take care of me”.  All I could think of, was the irony that, I was about to receive a “cold cash bonus”

He then proceeded to reach onto the back shelf and grabbed a large flat cardboard box.  Much to my chagrin, my package ended up being a box of large strawberries! Just to keep things copacetic I gave half the box of strawberries to my Broker.

To this day, I still laugh at this thoughtful gift because, otherwise, I would not have such a great story to tell.

Full Disclosure

   

^{This story was submitted by Anonymous from PA}

We were experiencing a dry spell during the time I was negotiating the sale of this house for my Buyer. The Seller had disclosed that "on occasion" they got some water leaks through one wall in the basement.

My Buyer was particularly nit-picky throughout the course of this sale, but surprisingly made no issue of it when it was brought to their attention.  Although my Buyer had driven the Seller to the point of threatening to pull the sale several times.

I was finally getting to the end with the final inspection scheduled.  

Of course, the day of the inspection the heavens opened up with torrential thunderstorms. As I walked into the house with the inspector and buyer, I could hear considerable activity coming from the basement. My heart sunk. Down in the basement the Seller was operating a shop-vac and standing in about six inches of water. The water was cascading in over the top of the foundation wall. I've never seen anything like it! Apparently, the Seller had laid down wood chips in the backyard right outside the basement wall, and the water sheeted over it into the basement.

The Seller came over to my Buyer before we could reach the bottom of the stairs and said, to my horror "I'm sorry. As you can see I can't sell you this house".

My Buyer reacted with "You have to sell me my house!". I never breathed such a sigh of relief. I could also see that the Seller knew exactly what he was doing.

Later after the closing, the Seller said to me; You know the timing of that couldn't have been more perfect. Should all of that water have poured in sometime after we closed, the Buyer could have come after me with a legal claim. But, with all of those witnesses, no worries.