I have a builder / timber framer / carpenter friend here in VT who does a fair clip of remodeling and energy audit / remediation / carpentry - 70% of what he works on is pre 1970. He's a practical VT guy (still driving an ancient Toyota pickup to jobsites that he traded for) - built his own TF house for his wife and family on a really tight budget - with his own 2 hands during off work hours. The more he gets into working on remodeling and doing additions to older homes and buildings - the more he deals with this - and he is actually excited about shelling out about $1k for the course, certification, and some specialized equipment. He's already doing the bulk of the recomendations - but really feels like it is $$ well spent.


And with a 2 YO and having now toured about 10 older homes in BTV (lokking for a new house in town) - I'm terrified a bit of having to deal with the lead paint (and sometimes asbestos) issues - as we'll need to move in while I do the work.

Yes - it can feel like the guvmint is legislating 1 more thing in our lives - buit I look at it as being 1 step closer to mandatory well crafted housing - similar to 'health insurance reform'. Its coming. Just wait.