Philadelphia Lead Certification
The City of Philadelphia requires landlords to obtain a Lead-Safe Certification if you are planning to rent the property out. A Lead-Safe Certification is also required in order to obtain or renew your Philadelphia rental license. As of October 1, 2020, the City of Philadelphia requires all rental properties throughout Philadelphia to obtain a Lead-Safe Certification in order for a landlord to execute or renew a lease or obtain or renew rental license. Get a quote for obtaining your Philadelphia Lead-Safe Certification today.
This Rental Property Lead Certification Law applies to all rental properties, even if the landlord does not plan to rent the property out to families with children. The regulation is being phased in over all Philadelphia zip codes, with the deadline for the final zip codes taking place on September 20, 2022. Read more about this law.
What is the process of obtaining a Philadelphia Lead Certification for landlords?
In order to obtain a Philadelphia Lead-Safe Certificate, you must enlist the help of a lead inspection company like Synertech before renting out a property. We test for lead-based paint in the walls. Our equipment will detect lead-based paint even if it’s covered by multiple outer layers of paint. In addition to testing for lead paint in the walls, we are also able to conduct testing for particles of lead-based paint in the soil or air of the property.
If lead-based paint is detected in the walls of the property, we will use wipes to sample dust throughout the property and test the contents for lead using an EPA-certified process. Then, we will help you enlist the services to properly and safely remove the lead-based paint from the property.
If there is no lead-based paint detected on the property, we will issue a Lead-Safe Certificate stating that the property is free of lead-based paint, enabling you to rent out the property and/or obtain your rental license.
You will need to submit a signed copy of this certificate to the Philadelphia Department of Health and provide your tenants with a copy of this document along with their lease. Click here to read the City of Philadelphia’s guide to the Philadelphia Lead Disclosure and Certification Law.
Why is a Philadelphia Lead-Safe Certificate important to obtain?
It’s important to protect the safety of your tenants. Children in particular are susceptible to lead poisoning––if a child accidentally ingests even a small amount of lead paint, they can suffer from serious health hazards such as brain damage, behavior and learning problems, and delayed growth. Obtaining a Philadelphia Lead-Safe Certificate helps landlords ensure that all tenants and their families are protected from the dangers of lead-based materials.
Securing this certificate also protects landlords from legal action surrounding the presence of lead-based materials in the properties they rent out. Landlords who do not complete this process prior to renting out a property may be subject to fines and code violations from the Health Department and are prohibited from renewing their rental license.
Although we primarily work with landlords in Philadelphia, Synertech also offers lead testing in South Jersey.