Has the toxic drywall issue in Lakewood Ranch been fixed? (St. Petersburg: for sale, foreclosure)

[eyeball1]

As I understand it a lmited amount of homes were found to have this drywall. Have these housed been fixed and remodeled? Has it hurt the resale in the community? Also once redone is it a save house to buy?

[Big House]

Originally Posted by eyeball1

As I understand it a lmited amount of homes were found to have this drywall. Have these housed been fixed and remodeled? Has it hurt the resale in the community? Also once redone is it a save house to buy?

No, It will be sometime before anyone can declare they are all fixed, and that there are no more houses that contain Chinese drywall. They like all houses that were built during the built up to the foreclosure crisis, they come to market slowly. The foreclosure process takes years, and a lot of entanglements to work through.

They come on line, and are fixed, repaired, masked, painted, carpeted, and so forth without a solid well thought out plan to rid them of the latent defects that the drywall has caused to them. Remember, they out-gassed a corrosive emission that deteriorates, copper, and steel. That means that almost everything in the house that is metal will begin losing its designed properties almost immediately, and that will continue long after the drywall is gone. Once that process has started, there is very little anyone can do, and replacing the drywall is only a minor part of the true corrective fix that is needed. Remember all the fasteners that hold the house together begin deteriorating during the process.

[SoFLGal]

I think you were referring specifically to the LWR community when you were asking if they were "all fixed". I knew of a few homes on Skip Jack Loop built by Taylor Morrison that were said to be effected.

IMO, any mention of CDW in a community is a concern. That being said, it is my understanding that there was a very small percentage of homes effected by CDW in Lakewood Ranch. I personally would not want to own or live in a home known to have had CDW. I know some people are OK with it but due to the health concerns I wouldn't want to take the chance.

These articles tell more about the CDW issue in LWR:

Nelson pushes Chinese drywall issue in Lakewood Ranch | HeraldTribune.com

‘Volatile sulfur compounds’ in Chinese drywall - Lakewood Ranch Herald - BradentonHerald.com

Drywall worries affect Lakewood Ranch homeowner | HeraldTribune.com

Myakka City dog trained to sniff out toxic Chinese drywall in houses - St. Petersburg Times

Homeowners say Chinese drywall making them sick | wtsp.com (http://www.wtsp.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=98053 - broken link)

[bbronston]

In Lakewood Ranch, there were a few that had it as SFG mentioned and I believe all have been remediated which means that they were taken down to bare concrete and studs and everything was replaced. There may still be some involved in suits with the builder so they may still exist but they would not be for sale without a disclosure--big time. I think it's fair to say that those remediated properties had a steeper and deeper decline in value than the market in general. Now that they are fixed, I think it is probably also fair to say that: a) there will be (for a while anyway) a stigma associated with those properties so, when prices start going up, they will lag by some unknown amount; and b) no one knows for certain (as BH said) whether any of the gas was absorbed by the studs and the concrete and, if any was, if any of that amount will offgas in an amount that would cause any concern. No one knows so the uncertainty, too, becomes a concern with regard to value. How much of a concern is completely up to the buyer. Some people don't care and figure a deal is a deal. Some people won't consider them under any circumstances.

For a buyer, the main concern in my mind would be can you get insurance and at what price? Also, as a former overprotective parent, I'd be mindful of the circumstances before bringing a baby or young child into the picture. Not because there IS a problem but because the MIGHT BE a problem and there are other choices. As an adult resident, I wouldn't give it a second thought, personally. I doubt there's anything to worry about.

[Big House]

Originally Posted by bbronston

In Lakewood Ranch, there were a few that had it as SFG mentioned and I believe all have been remediated which means that they were taken down to bare concrete and studs and everything was replaced. There may still be some involved in suits with the builder so they may still exist but they would not be for sale without a disclosure--big time. I think it's fair to say that those remediated properties had a steeper and deeper decline in value than the market in general. Now that they are fixed, I think it is probably also fair to say that: a) there will be (for a while anyway) a stigma associated with those properties so, when prices start going up, they will lag by some unknown amount; and b) no one knows for certain (as BH said) whether any of the gas was absorbed by the studs and the concrete and, if any was, if any of that amount will offgas in an amount that would cause any concern. No one knows so the uncertainty, too, becomes a concern with regard to value. How much of a concern is completely up to the buyer. Some people don't care and figure a deal is a deal. Some people won't consider them under any circumstances.

For a buyer, the main concern in my mind would be can you get insurance and at what price? Also, as a former overprotective parent, I'd be mindful of the circumstances before bringing a baby or young child into the picture. Not because there IS a problem but because the MIGHT BE a problem and there are other choices. As an adult resident, I wouldn't give it a second thought, personally. I doubt there's anything to worry about.

Insurers often have standard limitations that do not cover against pollution related issues that involve mold, and CDW, and other things like that. So, you need to be careful there.