Good Deal with Asbestos Siding? Anyone have Experience with the Costs of Removing/Covering it?

[Brandon Turner]

I'm looking at property (for a potential flip) that has asbestos siding. I'm wondering, should I:

1.) Cover with Hardi and have to disclose it (would that scare buyers?)

2.) Remove it (using a certified contractor) - any idea how much that would cost?

Any ideas?

I can get the property for $40k, and I can put $30k into the inside, with an ARV of $120k. So, that leaves not a whole lot for siding fixes.

Any ideas?

[Jon Holdman]

Is it damaged or falling apart? Is that common in your area? As long as its intact, its not a problem. If its common, it shouldn't scare off buyers. I used to live in a house in TX that had this siding and it was still when we drove by last fall.

[Bill Gulley]

Brandon, here there is no issue with asbestos siding if it's not broken. It can be painted heavily, sealed and it's not been an issue.

It is an issue when it's broken, chipped and exposing the asbestos filiment. Even when a corner may be chipped, if it is sealed it may be fine. The issue is exposed asbestos.

Here, they don't want you laying other siding over the asbestos as they claim driving nails breaks the old siding, putting a hole in it an thereby exposing the filiment, I think that's nuts too, but that's the position. So, to put up new siding, the old must be removed and done by a licensened contractor.

The type of siding will probably be noted on the appraisal and then may be an issue with a lender, my last encounter was fine so long as it was in good condition/unbroken.

It may be an issue of marketability, newer siding looking better, I'd look close at the price range and see if that improvement really pays for itself.

Now, let me say, I'm not upon current EPA stuff that's been going on, if it's a compliance issue, you may need to have it removed $$$$. :)

[Mike LaCava]

Hi Brandon Turner
Not sure what you have left for outside budget but based on your #'s it appears you have up to another $14,000 to keep within the 70% rule but you may have set a minimum profit so the 70% won't apply.
In any event Bill Gulley brings up some very important points about the EPA and lenders and how could affect the saleability of the house. Personally if you can remove it and put up new siding and it still fits in your budget then that is what I would do. You may in fact increase the value of the property and will help you sell more quickly. Make sure you use a licensed certified asbestos removal company for the job. depending on the size of the house I believe it could cost you anywhere from 2-$4000 depending on the contractor. Get a few prices. I had it done on a 1800 sf house two story for around $2500 which included disposal. Like to hear how you make out. Sounds like a good opportunity for a flip.

[Brandon Turner]

Great stuff guys, thanks! Jon Holdman and Bill Gulley - yeah, it's not in real good shape, and I think for a flip, it would scare people away. Houses are hard enough to sell in my area, so I don't think I'd want it blatantly out there that it's got asbestos.

Mike LaCava thanks for the price update! That's way cheaper than I was thinking. I'll call some contractors and see what I can find out!

[Bill Gulley]

Here, we don't need a permit to put siding on, if you know a siding guy I'd ask him if he could just thow some on there, he'd know more about what would really be required in your area. :)

[Jessica H.]

Hey Brandon! i was wondering what you found out about the abestos siding?? We are under contract for a house with the exact same numbers and it also has the abestos siding! we found in our area you can put siding over it and that is what we were planning on doing although it doesn't sound too expensive to get it removed.

[Brandon Turner]

Hey @Jessica H. I found out it would be around $1 a square foot (I think, if I remembered right) and so I figured, for a total replacement with Hardiplank siding and a new paint job it would run me about $12,000. I ended up buying the property, but left the siding as-is, and turned it into a rental. Someday, perhaps, I'll remove it.

And yes, you can cover it. However, I think you'd still have to disclose that it has asbestos, which defeats the purpose of covering it.

Good luck!

[Tom A.]

I'm sure it depends on the area, but I flipped a house with asbestos siding a few years ago and it was seen as a "vintage" attribute of the house, not a negative. I polled some of the local agents and they said if cost was equal, they'd prefer the asbestos siding to vinyl. Obviously, keeping the asbestos is much less expensive. Hardiboard would probably be a nicer look but at a significant cost.

When I sold the house the asbestos siding wasn't an issue for anyone, buyer or lender. Of course, your mileage may vary. Here's a photo of the house, for reference it's in about a $140K neighborhood.

[Rob K.]

FYI - if you ever have a missing piece of asbestos, you can cut a piece of luan and nail it on. Once you paint it, you can't tell the difference.

As far as covering the asbestos with other siding, do you even need to disclose? It's not harmful if it's intact, especially if it's covered. Anytime I've had a buyer or tenant question the asbestos siding, I tell them that asbestos is fireproof and then change the subject. No problem.

[Michael Herr]

In my area asbestos siding houses are listed as cement fiberboard (same category as hardie board).

No disclosure is needed. If you had the siding teated and it came baxk

As a buy and hold investor. I prefer asbestos as long as its not the only one in the neighborhood.

If painted it looks fine, wears great and can be patched with modern cement fiberboard(hardie board) siding.

[Jessica H.]

Interesting about the patching....how do you go about doing this without disturbing the abestos, do you cut/sand into the abestos to work the patch in?

[Jessica H.]

i mean asbestos...sorry for the wrong spelling....

[Michael Herr]

I put the piece on right over the broken one and caulked the top. It's just too brittle to do it right and this way looks fine from 5ft away.

[Dawn Anastasi]

I had to do one that was in really bad shape. It wasn't worth it to try to keep and patch in. So I had everything removed and new vinyl siding put on. It was more expensive than normal as I had to find someone who could do the work. The asbestos siding has to be wrapped before being disposed.

Example before and after:

[NaTarrio Jones]

Originally posted by @Dawn Anastasi:

I had to do one that was in really bad shape. It wasn't worth it to try to keep and patch in. So I had everything removed and new vinyl siding put on. It was more expensive than normal as I had to find someone who could do the work. The asbestos siding has to be wrapped before being disposed.

Example before and after:

Hi dawn, I know this post is very old, but I'm purchasing a duplex that I intend to do the same with the siding.  Around how much did this end up costing? 

[Adam Abdel-Hafez]

Adding on to what most have stated, if the asbestos siding is not broken then I would just paint it. I have done this a few times and never had an issue with buyers or lenders. Asbestos is a good building material and will last for a long time. Now, if it's broken then you need to remove it. I have only had this professionally done once and it was right around $2k which sounds like pretty in line with the $1/sqft mark you stated.