So you’re selling your home and your buyer’s home inspector notes the presence of what appears to be mold in your basement. Please don’t panic! At first glance this news is disturbing. There are many different types of mold and some may be serious. If you “google” Asperguillius Penicillium you will see that it is the most common form of mold. I have seen it in my real estate transactions regularly. Here is a quote: “For people with healthy immune systems, breathing in Aspergillus isn’t harmful.” This is from the Center for Disease Control (our amazing government at work!) from the US Department of Health & Human Services–NOT from some crazy, conspiracy theory web site. Here is the link: https://www.cdc.gov/fungal/diseases/aspergillosis/causes.html
A small percentage of people who have weakened immune systems (or radical surgeries) could be effected by mold. I’ve actually read that doing a lot of work on your home can increase the presence of mold, presumably because it is disturbed from the surfaces after you rub them, paint them, or clean them. So by cleaning mold, you can increase it in the air. Crazy!
Here is a fact sheet: https://www.cdc.gov/mold/faqs.htm#test
Also, note that mold testing usually does NOT show that you have a higher than usual mold count. It often just shows that the air INSIDE your home has more mold than the air OUTSIDE your home. Duh! I could’ve told you that. But seriously, I bet if you did this test on every house in New Jersey, you’d see this result a lot. I’m just guessing here. But don’t take my word for it–I am not a scientist. And I’m not a mold treatment specialist. You need to consult one.
The New Jersey Department of Health says that there are NO State certification programs for companies performing mold or general indoor air and/or environmental health services. The Department of Health has a mold information page which links to a list of companies that perform mold remediation services but they do not endorse or qualify the work or services of these private companies.
Bear in mind that the federal government says there are NO established scientific standards for what is acceptable or tolerable for mold.