A sign of the times. When we have to publish a registry of where the former drug houses have been. Well there is a very good reason for this. It is toxic and can cause brain damage to young children and severe health problems for adults.
The registry is not used by all cities which makes it less useful than if it was mandatory. The other 
problem with registry...how do you get a home removed from the registry once a home is cleaned up or repaired? There is no provision for removal from the registry as of this posting.
So the obvious issue is being on the registry could certainly lower the value of the homes around the Meth home and could long term affect the value of a repaired Meth home.
One of the problems with buying a Meth house is the insulation is affected in most cases as well. You may not be able to see the problems with a visual inspection. Go to the link I have provided and take a look at the issues created by these intrusions into communities causes by the people that prey on our society with lethal drugs.
www.usdoj.gov/dea/seizures/index.html this link takes you to the registry or you can go to www.usdoj.gov/dea for basic information and updates on meth houses and those that were caught.
This web site registry was created in December 2006 as a National Registry by city. Not all cities participate but some cities will take you literally hours to cruise through to see if the home you want to buy or show is on the registry.
Checking the registry is not a sure fire way to find out the facts...always chat with the neighbors...they will know too!
I hope this helps you in your quest to find a great "safe" home of your dreams for you and your family.
GREAT SOURCE OF INFORMATION ON THIS VERY IMPORTANT SUBJECT.
Gary - this is great info. Thanks for sharing! It's hard to determine which is which sometimes and the neighbors are certainly a good source of info. Only drawback to them is sometimes they use the term "meth house" as a blanket term to describe any sort of illegal activity. But at least that gives you a heads up on the whole issue.
GARY IS THERE A REQUIREMENT THAT THIS INFORMATION BE DISCLOSED TO ANY NEW POTENTIAL BUYERS ??????????????????
Fantastic info! Especially usefull when dealing with foreclosures, since inofrmation about the property is so limited or just unknown and property is sold AS-IS with enough addendums to sink a ship. Thank you very much and have a great day!
I believe the EPA would be in charge of potentially hazardous geographical areas. And as an agent, if you KNOW there was a potentially dangerous meth lab, of course you should disclose.
Gary,
I had no idea that this site was available. I have been in a group in Kentucky working hard to get houses sited and shut down for clean up before being made available to the public for sale again. We have been to the state capital and spoken to our state senators and legislators. We have also been in contact with our state commission and the state KAR. You see, we had an agent locally that was called to go look at listing a foreclosure. The home had already been "trashed out" so there were no clues left until she walked into the garage and saw all kinds of PVC piping on the walls. Anyway, long story, short version: the bank KNEW that the house had been a LARGE meth lab and did not disclose to her or to the person that did the "trash out". She became ill within minutes of leaving the house. She began passing out and has had several hospitalizations due to it since then. The same company called other offices after that and tried to get them to list the property. It was not disclosed to any of them either even though she had been hospitalized from exposure to the chemicals in the house and they had been made aware of it.
There are ways for these properties to be cleaned and made safe again, we need to get a way to see that it is done!
That is a great idea to protect people in the future. I would want to know
Hi Gary,
Is this law a city, county or state law? It seems to not address many unanswered issues.
;>)
Thanks for the info, I know if I was a buyer I would not want to purchase a Meth home.
Gary, thanks for the heads up. We haven't had a large problem with meth as yet, but we certainly should be aware of what's coming. Thanks for sharing the information and the site.
Gary, Your information on this issue was excellent.
Gary, great info. I'll be sure to pass it along to my clients.
Sindee, IMO if you know, it needs to be disclosed.
Of course you need to disclose this if you know, but is it your responsibility to go to the web-site and check every home out? I mean, how much digging is enough? It could take a week to research the entire history of a peice of property. Where do you draw the line? How much digging is enough?
Gary- On one hand it sounds like a great tool, but you are right, what if the home has been cleared of toxins? You make some good points, especially about talking to the neighbors.
"GARY IS THERE A REQUIREMENT THAT THIS INFORMATION BE DISCLOSED TO ANY NEW POTENTIAL BUYERS ??????????????????"
HELLO!!!!!!!
"there is a very good reason for this. It is toxic and can cause brain damage to young children and severe health problems for adults."
My son bought a home in TN that was used as a meth lab in 2004. No one ever told him before he bought the home and no one was liable for it because no laws were in place requiring any agency to disclose that to him. He found out about the home's history from neighbors in 2007, after he lived in the home with his wife and young sons. It cost him thousands of dollars to get the home decontaminated. His home owner's insurance was cancelled too, when they discovered his home's history. He finally sold the home this year, after receiving a certificate of cleanliness from the state of TN. Unlike my son, the buyers of his home had the advantage of knowing the home's history. They also had the advantage of buying a home that is toxin free.
If you want to find out if a home has been previously used as a meth lab, my recommendation is don't rely solely on the DEA clandestine meth lab registry for information. It is not a complete list. My recommendation is to call the local police department and the local health department to find out if the home was ever used as a meth lab. Check the disclosure regulations in your state about meth lab homes. Don't assume that your state requires a seller to disclose that and don't assume all sellers will disclose that either. Also, know that banks can sell foreclosure homes without having to disclose that information. They are not held to the same standards as private sellers.
I have started a web site www.methlabhomes.com to educate others about meth lab homes because of my son's experience of buying a foreclosed home in TN in 2004. Since 1999, there have been over 100,000 meth lab busts in the U.S. according to DEA statistics. However, I've seen estimates that there may be as many as 1 million meth lab homes in the U.S.
I would love to hear more about meth lab concerns from the prospective of realtors. You can email me at methlabhomes@gmail.com
Thank you for bringing up this important topic! The more others know about the dangers of meth labs, the safer we will all be!
Sindee,
Please tell me your not serious about your question.
Methlabhomes,
I'm sorry for your son's loss. Thank you for sharing that story with us. According to stat's I have read clean cost can range from 10K-100k. Sometimes a home has to be completely destroyed. Sindee, would you be able to sleep at night knowing your website help sell a house that was a past meth lab? Just like Mike stated as well would you feel bad if a buyers child developed brain damage or they parent became ill and couldn't work anymore just because you wanted to make some money by advertising a meth lab home on your site?
Still in the early stages, however, a few HI's are now starting to offer testing of narcotics during a home inspection. If you would like to learn more please visit this link...
http://activerain.com/blogsview/644179/Meth-Lab-Problem-Introducing
Hi Sindee, I wasn't sure people knew about this site. It may not be complete but it is helpful. Thanks for the comments Sindee.
Thanks for the commets Carol, this is critical information that make a huge difference in client health issues if the home has not been cleaned up properly.
Hi Sindee, this is a health issue and should be disclosed but not all sellers are disclosing this information. If you have knowledge it should be disclosed. I have not seen any litigation on this yet but it is only a matter of time. This is just as dangerous as black mold. The side effects to children is brain damage! Thanks again for the comments.
Hi Mark, this is exactly what I use the information for is the foreclosure market. It may not be complete but it is helpful when it is there. If you use the link there is more detailed info. Thanks for the comments Mark.
Hi Rebecca, so far the site and the information is being released by the DEA but I have no doubt the EPA will get involved as well. Thanks for the comments Rebecca.
Hi Earleene, thanks for the comments, this exemplifies the dangers of Meth homes. Thanks for your comments Earleene.
Hi Russ, I am with you. If I was purchasing I would want to know too. The key to remember is the Meth Lab is not price range or neighborhood specific. Thanks for the comments Russ.
Hi Ann-Marie, unfortunately it is not a law to register Meth homes. The disclosure act is a Federal Law so even if a home is not on the registry and the seller knows of the prior use as a Meth Lab they have to disclose. I agree this is only a start. Thanks for the comments Ann-Marie.
Hi Carol, the issue is the clean up. If the home has been cleared of the toxic resin properly it should be OK to live in according to the experts. I am not sure I would want to be the first to find out. Thanks for the comments Carol.
Hi Debbie, it is only a matter of time. This drug has taken over as the new drug of choice since it is so easy to make and and buy. Thanks for your comments Debbie.
how can i find out if rental house was a busted meth lab? address is 505 nations road, hodges, s.c..