Mr Williamsburg, Revolutionary ideas on real estate!Hampton Roads Virginia

A group including Senators Mark Warner,  Glenn Nye and Bobby Scott traveled  Hampton Roads yesterday to meet with families who own homes damaged by toxic Chinese drywall. Joining them was the nation’s top consumer safety official  Inez Tenenbaum chairwoman of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

The CPSC is the agency leading the investigation into the drywall issue, which is believed to be responsible for a host of health concerns and structural and safety issues for families who have it in their homes.

The first lesson learned :  It’s going to be expensive to fix the problem.

Helen Dragas ,president and chief executive of The Dragas Cos., told the group  her company is spending about $70,000 on each of its 73 condos in Chesapeake and Virginia Beach built with tainted drywall .The total cost for the company could exceed  $5 million .

The delegation saw first-hand the damage caused by Chinese drywall on the homes’ electrical and wiring systems  at The Hampshires at Greenbrier in Chesapeake, VA constructed by Dragas Companies .They also heard from the homeowners themselves on the affects of the drywall on their respiratory systems.

Homeowners shared stories about how they lived in their homes for almost a year before they realized that they all were having similar health and corrosion issues. They soon realized that the distinct rotten egg-like smell in their homes was in fact caused by the Chinese drywall.

Despite moving out of their homes, many of the homeowners said that they are struggling to pay off their mortgages and loans while still caring for their families.

Chairman Tenenbaum told the homeowners that once the scientific studies are complete, the CPSC will develop a remediation plan and present it to Congress. In the meantime, Senator Warner said he would work with local banks and lenders to try to persuade them to be flexible on the homeowners’ mortgage issues.

Homeowners have complained that the drywall corrodes electrical systems and makes people ill. The Consumer Product Safety Commission is investigating the complaints and air-quality issues related to the drywall and hopes to release its findings in coming weeks, said Inez Tenenbaum, the commission’s head.

The first home officials toured Monday at The Hampshires had been vacated by the homeowner but still had the original drywall remaining. A second home had all of its drywall ripped out, exposing wooden studs. A third home toured was completely restored and owner occupied.

The CPSC commission’s report will include an analysis of the elements and compounds found in the drywall, as well as results from air-quality tests.

Tenenbaum said the commission, which is spending $3 million to investigate Chinese drywall, will advise Congress on how to handle the issue. She said Congress will have to authorize funds and work with federal agencies to devise a national plan to help restore homes built with the drywall.

At least 150,000 sheets of Chinese-made drywall were imported by a local construction supplier. That’s enough to build more than 300 homes. The drywall since has been found in housing developments in Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Newport News, Chesapeake, Williamsburg and northeastern North Carolina.

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