The Montgomery County Council enacted Bill No. 31-15 on November 17, 2015 requiring radon testing prior to the sale of single-family homes, regardless of whether it is the initial or resale of the home.  Bill No. 31-15 will be codified as Section 40-13C of the Montgomery County Code and effective October 1, 2016. This legislation is applicable to single-family detached and attached residential buildings, excluding residential units that are part of a condominium regime or a cooperative housing corporation.  

Bill No. 31-15 requires a single family home be tested for radon before the sale of the home is complete, but not earlier than one year prior to the settlement date.  Either the seller or buyer is to perform the test, which provides another point of negotiation in the purchase contract.  No specific contract disclosure is required by Bill No. 31-15, but practically, this may render the optional radon inspection contingency, such as the one in the Greater Capital Area Association of Realtors® Addendum of Clauses – A, a required part of the home sales contract.  This standard contingency provides that the buyer conduct the test and the seller to remediate.  The test results are to be provided to both parties.

Exemptions to the radon testing requirement were incorporated into Bill No. 31-15. Those exemptions are: (i) single-family homes sales exempt from transfer tax under Section 13-207of the Tax-Property Article of the Maryland Annotated Code; (ii) sale by a lender or its affiliate or subsidiary that acquired the home by foreclosure or a deed in lieu of foreclosure; (iii) a sheriff’s sale, tax sale or sale by foreclosure, partition or court appointed trustee; (iv) transfer by a fiduciary in administration of an estate, guardianship, conservatorship or trust; and (v) transfer of a home that will be demolished (such as sales for infill development) or used for commercial uses.  Thus, it is important to determine first if the home sale satisfies one of these exemptions.

Starting October 1, 2016, make sure your clients and contracts are prepared to address this radon testing prior to the sale of a single-family home in Montgomery County.