Long term planning of selling your home?

[paulsharvey]

Popcorn cielings; if the existing is still in good shape and clean, I would leave it. If it's flacked off in areas, or has a lot of dirt around cieling AC vents, ect; it might be worth removing, and having a knock down texture sprayed; but only if needed.

 

[Sigarms]

Be very careful. You can redo your popcorn ceilings on your own without oversight. Because I presume you don't know, yes or no, if any asbestos is present.

I hired a contractor to redo popcorn ceilings once. He promptly took samples and sent them to a lab to see if asbestos was present. Surprise! Asbestos was present. That added $8,000 on top of the quoted cost plus slowed down and delayed the job.

House built in 1988 would have an asbestos issue?

 

[Sigarms]

One of the oddities of home sales; is the outside; people seem to recommend removing bushes, privacy screening, outbuildings; and then the new buyer, first thing, orders a prefab shed, privacy screen landscaping, ect.

The sheds away from the house has served us well, and I can't help it would do the same for anyone else wanting to move here.

We do have bushes and a Japanese maple around the house, but the reality is you can't really see the house from the road, which is one reason why we love it.

 

[plowhog]

House built in 1988 would have an asbestos issue?

From the article:

"In 1989, the infamous “popcorn ceiling asbestos ban” marked the end of asbestos additions to these textured ceilings."

The problem is that such dates are not really hard dates you can rely upon. For example, lead paint was outlawed in 1978 but that was only for new manufacture. Existing product stayed in the pipeline for several years afterward. Ask me know I know.

Asbestos in Popcorn Ceilings: Understanding the Ban Timeline

Curious about when asbestos was banned in popcorn ceilings? Click for a historical overview and safety advice!

www.homedecorchat.com

 

[EddieWalker]

I would defer to the realtor on the ceiling. Lots of homes have it, and lots of homes are going to still have it decades from now. Most people don't like it, but I've never heard of a sale not happening because of it. I've been hired by clients to remove it, but I've never had a Realtor recommend that it's removed. But your area might be different.

Has the popcorn ever been painted? Once it's painted, it's ten times harder to remove.

I would not test for anything. Leave that a secret so you do not have to disclose anything negative on the house. What you don't know, can't be held against you.

 

[Sigarms]

From the article:

"In 1989, the infamous “popcorn ceiling asbestos ban” marked the end of asbestos additions to these textured ceilings."

The problem is that such dates are not really hard dates you can rely upon. For example, lead paint was outlawed in 1978 but that was only for new manufacture. Existing product stayed in the pipeline for several years afterward. Ask me know I know.

Asbestos in Popcorn Ceilings: Understanding the Ban Timeline

Curious about when asbestos was banned in popcorn ceilings? Click for a historical overview and safety advice!

www.homedecorchat.com

The previous owner did some strange things on how he laid some things out, but I knew the owner of the HVAC company (who had since passed away) who laid out his 3 HVAC systems decades ago (even before I moved to NC), and I do know they were laid out to the "T" and done correctly with both a manual J and manual D.

You've given me something to worry about, but being the original owner really kind of went out of the way to do things right, so my fingers crossed on the popcorn ceiling.

Interesting, you think that would be a concern when you do a home inspection for selling wouldn't you?

 

[paulsharvey]

The previous owner did some strange things on how he laid some things out, but I knew the owner of the HVAC company (who had since passed away) who laid out his 3 HVAC systems decades ago (even before I moved to NC), and I do know they were laid out to the "T" and done correctly with both a manual J and manual D.

You've given me something to worry about, but being the original owner really kind of went out of the way to do things right, so my fingers crossed on the popcorn ceiling.

Interesting, you think that would be a concern when you do a home inspection for selling wouldn't you?

There is no obligation to remove asbestos or lead based paint; and there is still gonna be the blanket line about "homes build before xxx may contain lead based paint", and that's still going to be on everything, whether it's removed or not, it's a standard blanket statement. I would Not remove unless the existing was in bad condition.

 

[2manyrocks]

Even if it isn't disclosed to start with, I'd think most home inspectors would check popcorn ceilings for asbestos these days.

A lot of the stuff that is being torn out as outdated on the home improvement shows these days is the same stuff people used to want.

Evidently, a heck of a lot of money can get spent these days on decor, not function.

 

[plowhog]

Interesting, you think that would be a concern when you do a home inspection for selling wouldn't you?

Things vary by region. I know my region well; I don't know yours. And every deal is different.

Suppose you get a dream offer-- 100% of asking price with almost no contingencies. Except for the ceiling to be tested. Which then turn up positive .....

I've run across others who advised just covering it up with 1/4" plywood then texturing over that. I don't like that solution since if there are problem materials they are still in place. And Eddie would know if that is even practical-- I don't.

The prior owner could have been studious and careful with construction, but also may not have known what was in every one of the materials. And few owners are up to the task to install professionally looking popcorn ceilings. So, did the contractor who did your ceilings use up his old asbestos laden product in order to get rid of it?

Not trying to pile on to any potential problems-- just trying to help with navigation.

All of these issues are what makes real estate interesting ....

 

[paulsharvey]

Even if it isn't disclosed to start with, I'd think most home inspectors would check popcorn ceilings for asbestos these days.

A lot of the stuff that is being torn out as outdated on the home improvement shows these days is the same stuff people used to want.

Evidently, a heck of a lot of money can get spent these days on decor, not function.

I do not think a standard home inspection checks for asbestos or lead. Now, a home buyer could always pay for a much more detailed inspection, beyond what is required by their loan, but that would be a small minority.

Here is a screen shot of the resulting search.

The end result is not knowing us far better than knowing. It's not even shady; asbestos is harmless unless disturbed.