Chinese Drywall in Minnesota -- Update

City Lakes Posts by Popularity

The most popular post (by far) on this blog the last few days?

Realtors April Fool's Jokes (so much for my conceit that my Readers are all erudite, knowledge-seeking policy wonks).

Runner-up?

This post, which originally ran in late December: 'Chinese Drywall in Minnesota? New Bank Disclaimer.'

The impetus clearly was this announcement yesterday:

Homeowners should remove potentially defective Chinese drywall from their homes to prevent health and safety problems linked to noxious emissions, U.S. regulators said Friday.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission and Department of Housing and Urban Development disclosed new information they said indicated that certain Chinese drywall emitted hydrogen sulfide at rates 100 times that of non-Chinese samples, far more than earlier thought. The announcement could set the stage for Congress to compensate homeowners who face the expense of gutting their homes and replacing the drywall, officials said. One lawmaker said the U.S. should seek compensation from the Chinese government.

Chinese-made drywall, also known as gypsum or wallboard, has been under federal investigation because of complaints that the drywall emits sulfide fumes. Homeowners have complained of rotten-egg smells, corrosion of appliances and health problems such as bloody noses, headaches and respiratory issues.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has received more than 3,000 homeowner complaints from 37 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico alleging home damage from chemicals emitted from Chinese drywall.

--"U.S. Calls for Homes With Chinese Drywall to Be Gutted"; The Wall Street Journal (4/3/2010)

To the best of my knowledge -- and I have not researched it -- Minnesota is not one of the 37 states where complaints have been made.

My sympathies to any homeowners affected by this, no matter where they are: it sounds like a nightmare, on many counts (health issues, financial cost, litigation headaches, etc.)

Chinese Drywall in Minnesota?

New Bank Disclaimer

Chinese drywall may not have made its way to Minnesota yet -- but Chinese dry wall disclosures have.

I'm currently representing a Buyer interested in a bank-owned property where, in addition to the usual "As Is" disclaimers, there's a separate disclaimer addressing Chinese drywall.

If you didn't know, tainted Chinese drywall has popped up as a major issue in other markets, notably Florida and Southern California.

Which may explain why the bank in this case is requiring the drywall disclosure: it's based in Southern California, where it has undoubtedly run into the issue.

Just like Target -- once upon a time -- stocked its Southern California stores with the same gloves and antifreeze that it sold in Minnesota, many national banks have a "one size fits all" policy regarding the legal forms they use to dispose of their foreclosures.