Guide

Radon Testing for Landlords in Pennsylvania

Where the obligation actually sits

Pennsylvania has no radon statute for residential rentals. It does have two things that bear on this.

The implied warranty of habitability, affirmed by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in Pugh v. Holmes in 1979, requires residential landlords to keep a rental safe, sanitary and fit to live in. Whether a particular radon level meets that bar is fact-specific and not something this page can answer, but a documented result well above the action level that a landlord was told about and ignored is not a comfortable position.

The Radon Certification Act (Act 43 of 1987, 25 Pa. Code Chapter 240) requires DEP certification for anyone testing or mitigating radon for compensation, with an exemption only for a building the person personally owns and occupies. A rental is not that. So the DIY route available to a homeowner is not available to a landlord on their rental. See can I install it myself.

None of this is legal advice. A property attorney is the right person to advise on your portfolio.

Why testing first is the cheaper order

The alternative is that a tenant tests, or asks you to, and you find out on their timeline with a habitability conversation already underway. At that point you are choosing a contractor under pressure, possibly with a rent dispute or a code complaint attached.

Testing on your own schedule means:

• You choose the contractor and the price rather than reacting
• You can schedule between tenancies, when the unit is empty and access is trivial
• A below-action-level result is a document you keep, and it closes the question for years
• An above-action-level result becomes a planned capital item rather than an emergency
• A mitigated unit with a post-test certificate is a marketing point, particularly in a Zone 1 county

Practical testing on a rental

1. Test between tenancies wherever possible. Closed-house conditions are far easier to guarantee in an empty unit
2. If occupied, give proper notice under your lease and explain what the device is and why it must not be moved
3. Use a DEP-certified measurement professional where the result may be relied on by somebody else. Your own kit is fine for a private first look
4. Test the lowest lived-in level, or the lowest level that could reasonably become living space
5. In a multi-unit building, test ground-contact units. Upper floors generally read lower, but the building's air movement can distribute from below
6. Keep the report. Dated documentation is the whole point of doing this deliberately

Multi-unit buildings

Larger buildings follow different testing protocol from single-family homes, because mechanical ventilation is a major variable and every ground-contact occupied room is a separate question. A DEP-certified professional working to the appropriate standard is the right route, not a handful of kits.

Mitigation scales the same way the physics does: the same sub-slab depressurization principle, with more suction points and larger fans across a bigger slab. See sub-slab depressurization and radon in PA schools, which covers the large-building testing standard.

If a tenant raises it

1. Respond in writing and promptly. A documented, cooperative response is worth a great deal if this ever becomes a dispute
2. Agree who is testing and how. Offering to arrange a certified test is usually better than disputing a tenant's kit
3. If the result is above 4 pCi/L, confirm it, then mitigate. DEP's guidance for a 4 to 8 result is a confirming test first
4. Give the tenant the post-mitigation result, not just a statement that work was done
5. Do not do the work yourself. On a property you do not occupy, that is outside the certification exemption

A tenant's side of this is covered at radon and home sales for the transactional case, and the mitigation timeline is on how long it takes.

The cost, in landlord terms

A test is about fifteen dollars for a kit, more for a certified professional measurement. A standard system is commonly in the region of $800 to $2,500 depending on the foundation. Against that, it is a capital improvement with a long life, the only recurring costs are a fan every five to ten years and a retest every two, and in a Zone 1 county a documented mitigated unit is a genuine differentiator when you advertise.

Ranges and what moves them are on what it costs.

Common questions

Am I legally required to test a rental for radon in PA?

There is no Pennsylvania statute requiring it for residential rentals. Local ordinances and lease terms can create obligations, and a tenant who requests it and is refused has options under the warranty of habitability. Talk to a property attorney about your specific situation rather than relying on this page.

Can I install the system myself on my rental?

No. The Radon Certification Act exempts a person testing or mitigating in a building they personally own AND occupy. A rental you own but do not live in falls outside that exemption, so the work requires a DEP-certified professional.

Do I have to disclose a past result?

Pennsylvania's seller disclosure covers sales rather than leases. For rentals, what matters is what your lease says and what you have been asked. Concealing a known elevated result you were asked about is the scenario that creates liability. Get advice.