How to Sell My Meth House in Utah
What do you do when you find out that your house has tested positive for meth? And how do you sell that property? We will dive into some of the legal and health requirements that go along with meth-positive houses, how you can clean up meth contamination in your home properly, and, if necessary, how you can sell a meth contaminated property.
What happens when my property tests positive for meth?
Let’s talk about what you ha ve to do when your property tests positive for methamphetamines. The state of Utah requires that any property that tests higher than 1.0µg/100cm² must be immediately reported to the health department and is required to undergo remediation, considered unlivable and red-tagged until the meth remediation is complete. This means that anyone living in the property must immediately vacate the premises.
The owner is responsible for the cleanup regardless of whether or not they were the ones who caused it and may opt to clean the property themselves, but it is better off to use an experienced meth remediation company. It is very unlikely that a DIY meth cleanup will pass a test on the first try, as it takes technical skill, a lot of specialized equipment, and experience to know where to clean. Also, DIY cleanup can pose health risks if you do not properly use specialized protective equipment.
The health department will keep the contaminated property on a public list until the remediation is complete and the property passes another test. If the property does not pass the meth remediation test, you will have to clean again until it does.
How to clean up a meth house
The process to effectively clean up a meth contaminated house must be very thorough. While you can clean up a meth house yourself, it is certainly not recommended to do so. Experience plays a huge role in how thorough the cleaning is, as well as how long the cleaning takes.
What the process looks like:
You should expect to remove any contaminated materials from the house, and have an in-depth cleaning done on all surfaces. Any carpet, drapes, rugs, or porous material in the house will need to be thrown out. Specialized cleaning solutions will need to be used on all surfaces of the house including the floors, walls, ceilings, and fixtures. HVAC components like the furnace must be either cleaned or sometimes replaced entirely, and any duct work in the house will need to be thoroughly cleaned to prevent the meth residue from spreading through the house.
Once all the surfaces are cleaned and non-salvageable material is thrown out, the property will need to be thoroughly aired out (open windows, using fans and air purifiers). Once all of this is complete, you can retest the property to ensure that it tests under the state legal limit. If it passes the test, that is great news! Your property will be taken off the public list, and you can begin restoring it to livable conditions. This may mean replacing any carpet in the house, repainting the walls as they may be damaged during the cleaning, and replacing drapes and other porous materials.
Make sure to keep detailed records of invoices, cleanup procedures, pictures, and test results, as you may need these in the future.
Who can clean my house?
When the health department shuts down your house for meth contamination, they expect it to be vacant. That means no one can live there until remediation is complete. So if no one can be there, who is allowed to decontaminate the area?
Only you as the homeowner are allowed to be inside, or a professional state approved meth decontamination company.That means you can’t have your friends in there helping you out. Taking out the carpets, the furniture, and everything else that can’t be decontaminated will be on you alone if you decide to follow a DIY approach.
How do I sell my meth contaminated house?
Oftentimes, we see that homeowners run into meth issues in rental properties, or other family members occupy the property and don’t take care of it, and sometimes the owners themselves have smoked meth in their properties. In many cases, when an owner finds out that they have a meth problem, it is also the time to sell. There are a few options available to owners ready to sell their meth contaminated property. Some are good, others not so good. Let’s go over the options and see what works best for you.
- Clean up the house, renovate, and list the newly renovated house on the market
- If you put in the time, money and effort to get your house completely decontaminated, you will still have to renovate. You may have to repaint, as the chemicals used may damage wall paint, and you will have to replace any carpeting and drapes in the house. Once this is done as well as any other renovations you may need to do in the house, you will be ready to list your home on the market with a local real estate agent. Expect the cleanup and renovations to take anywhere from 6 weeks to 6 months before you are ready to list. Expect another 2 to 3 months for your property to sell and close if you have a competent real estate agent.
- Sell the house as-is to a local cash home buyer
- While you won’t get the same price as you would if you were to remodel the property yourself and go through the time and hassle, you will be able to sell quickly without repairing the property and you won’t have to worry about paying Realtor fees and sometimes even closing costs. A cash buyer will take care of the renovations themselves.
- Try to sell the house on the market as-is
- You might be thinking, if I put this place on the market now, I can get the highest bidder. Right? Wrong. Your average buyer will not be in the market for a meth contaminated house. There are not a lot of people with the appetite for that kind of problem. If you find a buyer (that is a big if), instead of selling directly, you will be paying up to 6% of your home’s value in agent commissions, but you may also have to pay some concessions, closing costs, and if you don’t know the buyer, you don’t know if they will get cold feet and back out before closing.
Scout Peak Home Buyers Buys Houses with Meth Contamination
Meth contamination can be scary. We will take care of your meth problems so you don’t have to! Scout Peak Home Buyers will buy your meth contaminated house, regardless of the contamination level. Call (435) 236-0689 for a fair cash offer on your meth contaminated house, or fill in the form below and we will reach out within 24 hours.