Should I pay for a radon test?

What is radon?

You can't smell or see radon. It's an odorless, colorless gas that is the second-leading cause of lung cancer in the U.S. If you're a smoker, the presence of radon in your home will considerably increase your chance of getting lung cancer. A study published in 2005 in the journal Epidemiology concluded your chance of getting lung cancer increases by 11 percent to 21 percent at average radon concentrations of about 3.0 picocuries per liter (pCi/L) of air over an exposure period of 5 to 30 years. The EPA recommends radon mitigation at 4.0 pCi/L.

The presence of radon doesn't mean your home was built over an atomic-waste dump. Its origins are natural--from the breakdown of uranium found in almost all soil. The gas finds its way into a home through such paths as cracks and other holes in the foundation. The greatest concentrations of radon gas are found in the Northeast US and the levels are usually higher in below grade basements with poor ventilation.

All homes have Radon, it is everywhere, but at a certain level it can become dangerous. If you have a below grade portion of your home with poor ventilation that you are going to spend a lot of time in, you should get a radon test. If you already own the home, there are plenty of affordable tests that you can get from your local hardware store for less than $30.

If you do have radon, it is fairly easily fixed by drilling a hole through your foundation and venting the air in the rocks under your foundation through a pipe and out of your home. This will free the pockets of air with high levels of radon from seeping into your home. You probably won't want to do this yourself. It can cost anywhere form $600-$2000 to fix. You can find one through your state radon office or through these private organizations: the National Environmental Health Association and the National Radon Safety Board.

What Constitutes a Legal Bedroom?

When I am asked to list properties or am showing properties with small rooms, I often get the question, "Is this considered a bedroom?" The number of bedrooms in a house is important because sellers want to appear in the search results of as many buyers as possible; however, any bedroom listed needs to be legal size in order to get the nod, so I thought it would be useful to share the actual requirments for legal bedrooms...

According to the International Residential Code (IRC), a legal bedroom must be at least 70 square feet in area, with a width not less than 7 feet. The minimum required ceiling height is 7 feet 6 inches. If the ceiling is sloped, the required height applies to at least half of the ceiling. As for windows, bedrooms must have windows for light, ventilation, and emergency escape. If a basement room does not meet these requirements, it cannot be considered as a legal bedroom. The minimum size requirement for bedroom windows that provide natural light is at least 8% of the floor area of the room, and minimum size for openable windows is at least 4% of the floor area of the room.

For emergency escape, the openable window must have a sill height of no more than 44 inches above the floor. The size of the opening should be at least 5.7 square feet, measuring no less than 24 inches in height and no less than 20 inches in width. Windows should be able to open without the use of a key or tool. Screens and bars are permitted as long as they can be opened or removed from inside the dwelling, also without the use of a key or tool. The code makes no mention of bedroom closets because these can be provided by means of portable cabinets.

Happy hunting!

Virginia Claims 10 of America's Top 100 High Schools

Virginia has received great marks when it comes to public high schools placing 10 schools in Newsweek's list of the top 100 public high schools in the nation. Top Va schools were H-B Woodlawn in Arlington (13), Clarke County in Berryville (32), Washington-Lee of Arlington(33), and Yorktown in Arlington (59).

Public schools are ranked according to a ratio devised by Jay Mathews: the number of Advanced Placement, Intl. Baccalaureate and/or Cambridge tests taken by all students at a school in 2006 divided by the number of graduating seniors.

Click here for a complete list of all ranked schools

D.C. Ranked Fifth Best City for Young Professionals

Washington D.C. was ranked as the 5th best city for young professionals by Forbes in a recent article. The list was compiled by tracking where the graduates of top universities across the country ended up 10 years after commencement; where the best business opportunities exist; which cities had the most young and unmarried people; and which cities paid young professionals the best.

Read the full article.