When you are trying to sell your house, it can often feel like an impossible, long checklist of things that must get done at the same time or in a specific sequence, so that you can have everything set up for showings, do some minor landscape improvements, and make sure that your carpets have been cleaned well enough before your home inspection.
In lots of Syracuse area neighborhoods above 50% of homes have high radon levels. Many sellers in Central New York unexpectedly find out during the closing process that they have run into a serious issue when the home inspector’s radon test reports a high radon level. If the results of your testing show high levels of radon, don’t panic; it just means you need to do something about it.
Adding a radon mitigation system in Syracuse is simply an intelligent, standard way to invest in your family’s safety, support your real estate transaction, and provide comfort to a potential new owner. If your home already has a radon mitigation system and the radon is still high, your system may need repair, a tune up, a more powerful radon fan or some other improvement.
We will explore in this article:
- The impact of radon on Central New York real estate transactions.
- Key differences between system designs, including the popular “Canadian style” versus traditional setups.
- Essential factors to look for when hiring a professional team to handle the installation.
Why Radon Matters to Syracuse Home Buyers
The Onondaga County and Syracuse, NY area is known for high levels of radon gas from the natural rocks and soil. Since radon gas is odorless, colorless, and causes lung cancer, potential buyers of modern homes are very cautious regarding it. If a home inspector records a high level of radon in the home, it could stop the sale of the home completely.
Home purchasers want to know that the radon issue will be resolved completely and not just temporarily. Installation of a dependable radon mitigation system will lower the radon levels to below the EPA action level and allow the home to pass an inspection, allowing the sale to proceed quickly to close without any unnecessary delays or last-minute negotiations concerning the price of the home.
Choosing the Best Radon Mitigation System for Your Home
When searching for a radon mitigation company in New York, you’ll discover that not all systems are created equal. There are 2 major system types to choose from when looking for a radon mitigation system for your house:
- Traditional “American-Style” Systems: These systems feature fans placed outside near ground level, connected to long vent pipes that extend up to above the roof. This is a very common method, but in areas like Syracuse, they often have issues in the winter due to the vent pipe freezing up blocking the air flow.
- Modern “Canadian-Style” Systems: These systems place the fan inside the basement or attic with only a small length of exhaust pipe running outside. These systems won’t freeze, are much more efficient. The radon fans last two to three times as long as in American-Style system. They also are less expensive to operate, and easier to maintain.
- Aesthetic Value and Weatherized Fit: Given the choice, most informed homeowners choose the Canadian-Style which in every case is more aesthetically appealing, blends better into your house’s appearance, which is more attractive to a potential buyer.
Essential Factors for Hiring a Radon Professional
If you require an expert who has vast experience in the Upstate New York area to navigate you through the process of mitigating the radon in your home, A Best Radon Systems is a local service provider with a proven track record for successful installation. They provide a fully transferable five-year warranty on their radon mitigation systems so your home can remain radon-free for the next new family who purchases it. Wherever you are or whoever you hire, here are some important things to look for in hiring a radon professional:
- Experience: Look for a radon company or professional with proven experience, ideally one who does full-time radon mitigation and has been in business long enough to service warranty calls. Many if not most companies that perform radon mitigation do so as an aside of their other work, usually general contractors. In central New York many companies’ advertising radon mitigation are short lived and out of the radon business in few short years or less. A surprising number of installers don’t even bother to fill out the installer contact information sticker that is part of the monitoring gauge, leaving contact for service number blank.
- Word of mouth recommendations: Look for a company with good, genuine reviews from real people, or get an actual word of mouth recommendation from someone you know.
- Custom Design Choices and Options: Very few New York radon companies offer a Canadian-Style system. Given the choice, most informed homeowners choose the Canadian-Style which in every case is more aesthetically appealing, blends better into your house’s appearance, and would be more attractive to most buyers.
Conclusion
When it comes to an environmental radon concern affecting your real estate transaction, there is no need for this concern to derail your real estate transaction or cause an agent to delay closing. With the help of a professional radon mitigation company in New York, you can turn that radon hazard turns into an overwhelming marketing advantage. Once the radon is properly mitigated it can become a “Safe Home” marketing strategy. In the same way a new furnace or roof is a bonus for potential buyers, so is home that is successfully mitigated of high-level radon. Especially in areas like central New York where high radon is common.
