Radon gas at Birch Glen (HOA, condos, buying)

[jaymh]

Hello,
We are in a process of buying a 2bed 2bath condo without basement in the Birch Glen community of Piscataway. Any idea if there is a radon gas issue in these condos? Also, has flooding increased in this area? We are very confused as to make an offer or not!!
Thanks for your help in advance!!

[Retriever]

To the best of my knowledge, there is no radon issue at Birch Glen. What does definitely exist, however, are the ongoing issues resulting from the highly-flawed construction of this complex. The list of defects--from missing fire walls in the attic, to a sewer line that did not have sufficient "pitch" to drain properly, to incorrectly-installed siding and flashing that allow water intrusion--is very long.

The HOA sued the builders over the massive construction defects, and they won, but the settlement was not very large, and the HOA seems to be spending it very slowly on repairs. My closest friend lives there, and he continues to have construction-related issues that the HOA has not yet addressed. He has concluded that he may have to sue the HOA in order to force them to repair the defects in his unit.

[peoj]

If a high level of radon is found, the seller is required to mitigate it. This means installing a ventilation system to pump air out of the lowest level of the structure. Since this is a condo complex, you can try taking a walk around the complex and check to see if there are a lot of these ventilation pipes.

[Retriever]

Originally Posted by peoj

Since this is a condo complex, you can try taking a walk around the complex and check to see if there are a lot of these ventilation pipes.

That's a good suggestion. While I haven't noticed any radon vent pipes at Birch Glen, I haven't looked at all sides of every building. Radon infiltration is a curious phenomenon, in that two buildings standing next to each other can have vastly different radon levels.