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Lead-Based Paint Inspections in Rental Dwelling Units as per  P.L. 2021, c. 182 aka New Jersey's Lead Safe Law July 2022

What New Landlords need to Know

July 22, 2022, New Jersey’s newest lead-based paint law is now in effect and the law affects all pre 1978 rental properties. The law is being referred to as New Jersey’s Lead Safe Certification and requires rental property owners to complete a lead paint inspection. The inspection is either visual or visual and wipe sampling depending on the municipality.

What landlords need to know

The New Jersey lead law requires that the landlord of residential properties (apartments, houses, duplexes, etc.) hire a certified lead evaluation contractor to perform inspection on target properties single family, two-family and multiple rental dwellings for lead-based paint hazards every three years. The first inspection must be completed by July 22, 2026, or at tenant turnover if that occurs prior to July 22, 2026.

If your rental property has not had lead testing performed previously and you would have obtained a Lead Free certification, then you are to assume lead paint is present and have the lead paint inspection performed. In short if you don’t have paperwork stating the building has no lead paint you must perform the required inspections.

Curren Environmental offers lead based paint risk assessments and lead based paint inspections for NJ property owners.   888-301-1050

Visual Lead Safe Certification: The Curren certified lead inspector will perform a visual inspection of all interior areas of the rental unit, looking for deteriorated paint. New Jersey considers deteriorated paint to be chipping, peeling or flacking paint.   If no deteriorated paint is found the rental unit owner can receive a Lead Safe Certificate which is good for 2 years.

For example, one of the photos below would pass the lead safe inspection, the other would not.

Dust Wipe Testing for Lead Safe Certification:   The Curren certified lead inspector will perform a visual inspection of all interior areas of the rental unit AND obtain dust wipe samples for laboratory analysis.   If no lead is found by the analysis above government standards, the rental unit owner can receive a Lead Safe Certificate which is good for 2 years.

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Lead is sometimes considered the first metal. The ancient Romans used lead for plumbing and regarded lead as the “father of all metals”. Even though they discovered that lead could cause madness, and even death lead was still used. Especially among the aristocrats who used it in wine carafes, glasses, and food plates, all which contained lead. Leading to, what many scholars researched, the fall of the Roman Empire.

Moving towards the “New World” era, lead was beginning to be mined in the state of Virginia. The first use of lead was known to be used in the manufacturer of arms and ammunition by American Colonies. Lead also began to be used in the US for drinking water pipes. The lead was less expensive and more durable than iron, lead piping could also be easily bent making it better to use in existing buildings. It was believed that the earliest health concerns were raised in the 1850s but in the 1920s the effort to ban or limit lead piping became known.

Lead can be found in the air, soil, and water. Where is lead in our homes today? Much of our exposure comes from our activities, such as the past use of leaded gasoline, industrial facilities paint, and lead piping for water use.  Did you know after leaded gasoline was banned lead in our bloodstream diminished?

What made lead paint so popular?

Lead in the paint allowed the paint to dry quickly, allowed the paint to resist moisture & made the paint more durable.

•  The lead was thought to make products better.
• It is easily shaped, soft enough to be malleable
• The low melting point for easy casting into shapes.
• Lead has durability you did not get from, ceramics, used to seal jars, give roofs waterproof lining, be used in sewage and water pipes that would not crack easily.

Where can lead paint be found?

• Windows and windowsills
• Doors and door frames
• Stairs, railings, banisters, and porches

Is lead paint in your home or the home that you are purchasing? Depends on the age of the home.

As you can see lead in paints was immensely popular and the older the home the more likely lead-based paint will be present.   Lead paint was phased out in the 1970s.   If your home is older than 1978, you likely have lead paint. EPA Fact:  Approximately three-quarters of the nation’s housing built before 1978 contains some lead-based paint. This paint, if properly managed and maintained, poses little risk.

If you want a lead paint-free home buy a home built after 1978. But also understand that paint containing lead applied to pre-1978 likely has multiple coats of paint on top of it. The risk of human exposure to lead paint directly correlates to the quality of the painted surface. Chipping and peeling paint can be a concern. If you do renovation and disturb painted surfaces, you are likely to encounter lead paint.   You are much more likely to be exposed to mold than lead paint in the average home.