abestos insulation on heating vents (crime, home, purchase)

[nudie345]

Hello all, im in the process of purchasing a home..had the home inspection and found abestos insulation on heating vents and I've agreed too a $500 cap on repairs. Im pissed because I'm sure the seller was aware of the asbestos however, did not disclose that information which is a crime itself...I'm wondering how pricey it is to have this type of abestos removed and whats the rate for an air test? Since there is a $500 cap, i'm considering asking the seller for the air test to have piece of mind until I make the necessary repairs. Should I negotiate price? Should I demand they do the abatment or walk...Any thoughts?

For clarity..the abestos appears to wrapped around all the metal duct work inside the walls. The ductwork in plain view does not have abestos on it.

[ansky]

Asbestos is very expensive to remove. We have two small pipe fittings in the basement that have asbestos, which the removal company considers "minimal" and they wanted to charge over $900. We decided it wasn't even worth removing considering the small quantity and the basement location. I did some research and found that asbestos is generally only dangerous for people working with it, and often cleanup makes things worse because the asbestos particles become airborne. You should probably have someone come out and give an expert opinion on the situation.

[nowitsshowtime]

$500 for asbestos removal is nothing. It's an arm and a leg.

[joe moving]

Is it around duct work or around water or water pipes?

If it is in the walls, its probably never going to get disturbed.

[blackandproud]

Originally Posted by nudie345

Hello all, im in the process of purchasing a home..had the home inspection and found abestos insulation on heating vents and I've agreed too a $500 cap on repairs. Im pissed because I'm sure the seller was aware of the asbestos however, did not disclose that information which is a crime itself...I'm wondering how pricey it is to have this type of abestos removed and whats the rate for an air test? Since there is a $500 cap, i'm considering asking the seller for the air test to have piece of mind until I make the necessary repairs. Should I negotiate price? Should I demand they do the abatment or walk...Any thoughts?

For clarity..the abestos appears to wrapped around all the metal duct work inside the walls. The ductwork in plain view does not have abestos on it.

Just wondering, why would you agree to $500 cap, this sounds like a old home? Did you by chance include in your contract that its based on the inspection? Just because you have that $500 repair clause, you can still pull out. They would be smart to negotiate with you, because if you do pull out, by law they have to devulge and ultimately clean it up. I just went through the same thing. The home I purchased as asbestos around the pipes in the basement, the previous owners had to clean it up before closing.

I would also check with the town your trying to purchase in. They may be required by law to clean up the asbestos regardless of what you have in the contract.