The short answer is yes. Radon is a carcinogenic, radioactive gas which emanates from natural decay of uranium in the earth’s supply of water, rocks, and soil. Can’t see it, can’t smell it, can’t taste it.

What can I do?

It’s quite simple for both home buyers and home sellers to hire a home inspector to test for radon. Visit the ASHI website for a list of qualified home inspectors in your area. Costs for short-term radon testing (about 2 days) is about $100-$150.

What if they find radon in my home?

The bad news is that the Surgeon General has warned that radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the US today. The good news is that radon mitigation systems work, and they are not very costly. The EPA recommends that home owners take action if the levels of radon are above 4.0 pCi/L. Most radon mitigation contractors can install a venting system in your home or the home you want to buy for an average price of about $1,200. Visit The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment website and download their list of residential radon mitigation contractors if you need help.

Is this a deal killer?

Radon does not have to be a deal killer for either a home seller or a home buyer. It’s quite common for buyers and sellers to negotiate to have a radon system installed in the home after radon is deteced during the inspection. Most radon mitigation contractors will return radon levels to 4.0pCi/L after installation of the system.

How dangerous is 4.0 pCi/L of radon?

It’s hard to say. This level is simply the “action level” as recommended by the EPA. If you want some perspective, just take a look at this chart below which shows the action levels in various countries around the world:

If you’d like more information about radon or other environmental issues surrounding the purchase or sale of a home in Colorado, please feel free to call us at 303-415-2541

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, May 16th, 2007 at 8:11 am and is filed under Colorado Real Estate. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.