older house with suspected asbestos cladding and interior sheeting

Folks,
as per the title I have been considering a little house of 1975 vintage that is only 100m from the beach, it would be for me to reside in. Only a two bedroom single bathroom but enough room for a single bloke and it has a 9x6m shed! .

It has been many years since I have bought a house what with divorce and getting myself financial again so kind of overly nervous with decisions on purchase.

It has had a renovation, new kitchen, bathroom and laundry and fully painted inside and out.

Being an older house it has what looks to be hardi plank weatherboards on the exterior and interior appears to be some short of sheeting with gaps visible between each sheet. No cornices, just square timber in the corners to seal it.

Now given its age and how it is constructed I suspect it will be asbestos sheeting both exterior and interior. Roof is corrugated iron, eaves probably asbestos sheet as well.

A work colleague who is also a licenced builder has warned me off it as have some other colleagues, we all work in construction field but not building related.

So learned folk should I stay well clear or is it safe?

I would want to get an asbestos inspection done as part of the building and pest inspection.

Can anybody advise cost and time frame to have those completed?

thanks in advance
Cheers
Peter

 

Asbestos is an issue if it is in poor condition, broken, worked on or being removed.

Unless you intend drilling it etc, it shouldn't be an issue for many years.

 

The interior has already been renovated and painted, so there should be no issues with the interior unless you want to drill into the walls to hang photos or shelves. There is UTube to teach you how to do this safely or you can pay someone for their labour. If the house suits you in its current state, then why not go ahead?

Should you want to develop it in the future, the costs for dealing with the asbestos would most likely be covered in the reduced purchase price of buying it now compared the the cost of an all-timber house.

 

A property 100 metres from the beach with a 9x6m shed?
What are you waiting for?
Sure it will have asbestos in it, but as others have said, if it's painted and in good condition it's not an issue. Down the track if you decide to make some changes to the house, just be sure to do it properly.

 

Go for it! Sounds wonderful.
Best to ascertain if it is asbestos just so you know, but don’t panic.
Asbestos can be handled safely provided correct procedures are followed.