The city of Philadelphia wants all rent homes to be lead free or, if not lead free, then at least lead safe.
What does this mean when you’re renting out an apartment in Philadelphia? It means you have to have your property tested and certified as not having dangerous levels of lead found in the building.
Here’s a guide to ensuring lead safety in your Philadelphia apartment.
Why Lead is a Big Deal in Philadelphia
One only has to look at the statistics to understand the public health threat that lead poses.
According to data released by the city, most three-year-olds in Philadelphia have been tested for elevated lead at least once in their young lives. Between 2011 and 2021, 30-40% of children had been tested by one year of age. Another 30-40% were tested between one and two, and an additional 8-12% were tested between two and three.
Looking at statistics in Philadelphia today, those elevated blood lead levels among children have become less common. In 2011, about 18% of screened three-year-olds ever had an elevated blood lead test (5 ug/dL or higher). In 2021, this declined to about 6%. About 4% of three-year-olds in 2011 ever had an elevated blood lead test of 10 ug/dL or higher compared to about 2% in 2021.
This is proof that the lead requirements in housing are working.
The City of Philadelphia has been working with landlords and developers to reduce the number of children with elevated lead levels. If children are living in a home that contains lead paint and lead pipes we want to make sure that the property is lead safe. Laws, regulations, and an advisory group protect families and children from the harmful effects of lead.
There’s no option here for landlords; you have to participate in the efforts to reduce lead exposure. When property owners refuse to make necessary repairs to protect children from lead, they can end up in Lead Court.
Lead testing
Submitting Lead Certification and Inspection Reports
Landlords in Philadelphia are required to test and certify that the rental properties they own are lead safe or lead free in order to execute a new or renewed lease. When you apply for your rental license, you’ll have to provide documentation that you’ve tested your property for lead.
Here’s how you do it.
- Hire an approved and certified lead professional to conduct the necessary testing and complete the necessary report. You can use an EPA-approved technician who will test for lead with a wipe. Or, you can hire a lead abatement firm that’s certified by the Pennsylvania Department of Health.
- Once you have received a lead certification, you will want to submit the results to the City’s Lead Certification Submission System. This is a database that allows you to upload, manage, and view lead certifications.
This is something you’ll have to plan for every year so you can get your rental license renewed.
Lead and Copper Rule and Water Quality in Philadelphia
You think of lead as being in paint and maybe in pipes. This leads us to our discussion of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rule around lead and copper as they pertain to water.
Philadelphia recently passed legislation that deals with water quality testing. Consumer taps were tested for lead across the city. In addition to regular tests done every year at home taps upon request, the city also must comply with federal drinking water regulations, defined in the EPA’s Lead and Copper Rule. This rule requires the city to sample water from taps in homes that have lead service lines every three years. 90 percent of the sampled homes must have lead levels under the action level of 15 ppb.
Landing in Lead Court
You read about Lead Court above, but what does that really mean?
If a landlord or homeowner does not repair the lead hazards in their Philadelphia rental property, they may be referred to a hearing in Lead Court.
This is typically triggered when a child’s blood lead level tests at 3.5 or above. This triggers a warning, and the child’s health care provider notifies the Lead and Healthy Homes Program (LHHP). From there, LHHP will visit the property where the child lives and conduct a widespread inspection for lead hazards. The inspection report will come back to the property owner with details of all of the surfaces in the property that must be repaired.
And then, you’ll want to make the repairs immediately.
There’s a timeline. The LHHP will give the landlord or homeowner an order to remediate the lead hazards within 30 days. You will find that this type of remediation is likely to be expensive, but there’s good news. You are likely going to be eligible for funding to help remove the lead hazards. LHHP will work with you to see if you qualify for funding. The agency will also be willing to help coordinate the lead repair.
Once you have made the repairs, expect LHHP to re-inspect the property after the 30 days have elapsed. If you have not made or scheduled the required repairs, or if you failed to follow proper remediation guidelines, LHHP will inform the City’s Law Department.
That’s how you get a notice to appear in Lead Court.
This is serious, and you’ll want to avoid being summoned to Lead Court. Before the court date, you will have the opportunity to make the repairs or, at the very least, schedule them. If the work is completed or in progress by the court date, the Law Department can either discontinue the court referral or issue a continuance.
When you continue to refuse making the lead repairs, you might find yourself facing fines ranging from $2,000 to $250,000.
Let’s not make any mistakes around lead. Contact a Philadelphia property manager like the team at TCS Management. We can keep you in compliance.
TCS Management is a full service property management company headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, also serving Cherry Hill, NJ, Wilmington, Delaware, Nashville, Tennessee and the surrounding areas. We focus on single-family and multifamily residential property management of homes, condos, townhomes, and apartment buildings.
