What Real Estate Agents Should Know About Radon in Michigan

Real estate agents in Michigan occupy a unique position in the radon conversation. They interact with buyers and sellers at the precise moment when radon is most likely to come up — during a transaction — and they are often the first professional either party turns to for guidance on what to do when a test result comes back. Yet in Michigan, where no law requires radon disclosure or testing as part of a real estate transaction, many agents navigate radon questions without a clear framework for how to handle them professionally and in their clients' best interests.

This post is written for real estate agents and the buyers and sellers they represent. Understanding radon well enough to guide clients confidently is not just a professional asset — in a state where elevated radon is found in one in four homes and where the legal landscape leaves the issue largely unaddressed, it is a meaningful form of client protection.

What Michigan Law Currently Requires — and Does Not

Michigan does not require sellers to test their home for radon before listing. It does not require disclosure of known radon levels on the standard seller disclosure form. And it does not mandate radon testing as a condition of sale. As we covered in our post on Michigan real estate and radon, this places Michigan behind neighboring states like Indiana, which requires disclosure of known radon hazards, and well behind Minnesota, which has comprehensive radon disclosure requirements built into its transaction framework.

What this means practically for agents is that radon is an invisible issue in many Michigan transactions — not because it is not present, but because no one is required to raise it. Sellers may have tested years ago and never followed up. Buyers may not know to ask. Agents who do not proactively introduce the topic may be facilitating transactions in which a significant health risk goes unaddressed by default rather than by informed choice.

The absence of legal requirements does not mean the absence of professional responsibility. An agent who understands radon and communicates it clearly to clients is providing a level of service that protects both the client and the agent's own professional reputation.

The Liability Dimension

Michigan's lack of mandatory disclosure does not eliminate the liability considerations around radon in real estate transactions. It shifts them.

If a seller knows their home has elevated radon levels — because they tested at some point and received a high result — and does not disclose that information to buyers, the legal exposure for both the seller and potentially the listing agent can be significant. Known material defects that affect a home's value and habitability are generally subject to disclosure obligations even in states that do not have specific radon disclosure laws.

Elevated radon is a known material defect once it has been measured and documented.

For agents working with sellers, the conversation about radon prior to listing is worth having precisely because it is better for everyone involved to surface the information before it becomes a transaction problem. A seller who tests before listing, discovers elevated levels, and installs a mitigation system is in a far stronger position than one who either did not test or knew about elevated levels and said nothing. A mitigated home with documented post-installation test results below the action level is a more marketable, more defensible property than one with unknown or unaddressed radon.

Working With Buyers: How to Introduce the Topic

For agents working with buyers, raising radon as part of the due diligence conversation is straightforward and serves the client's interests clearly. Most buyers who have not previously purchased a home in Michigan are unaware that radon testing is not automatically included in a standard home inspection. Alerting them to this gap early — ideally when discussing the inspection process — gives them the opportunity to add radon testing before making a purchase commitment.

The practical mechanics are simple. A radon testing contingency in the purchase agreement gives buyers the right to test the home and, depending on results, to negotiate or exit the transaction. Connecting buyers with a certified radon professional who has experience working within real estate transaction timelines ensures the test is conducted properly and results are available within the window the transaction allows.

As we discussed in our post on testing before buying a home in Michigan, buyers who discover elevated radon during the transaction process have meaningful options — requesting seller-funded mitigation, negotiating a price reduction, or in cases of significantly elevated levels, reconsidering the purchase. Buyers who discover elevated radon after closing have none of those options. The cost and responsibility are entirely theirs.

When Radon Comes Up Mid-Transaction

How an agent handles a radon test result that comes back elevated mid-transaction says a great deal about their value to their client and their professionalism in a challenging situation.

For buyers' agents, an elevated result is not a transaction-ending crisis — it is information that needs to be translated into a negotiating position. Modern radon mitigation is effective and the cost is known and manageable, as we covered in our post on mitigation costs in Michigan. A buyer's agent who can frame an elevated radon result as a solvable problem with a defined cost — rather than a mysterious and alarming finding — is serving their client well.

For listing agents, an elevated result discovered during a buyer's inspection is best handled transparently and practically. The seller's options are clear: install mitigation before closing, offer a price concession to cover the cost, or risk the buyer walking away. A listing agent who has prepared the seller for this possibility in advance — ideally by encouraging pre-listing testing — is in a much stronger position than one who encounters the issue for the first time during a transaction.

Homes With Existing Mitigation Systems

Agents regularly encounter homes that already have radon mitigation systems installed. These are generally positive selling points — they indicate a previous owner took radon seriously, invested in a solution, and documented the result. A home with a well-maintained mitigation system and documented post-installation test results below the action level is a home where the radon question has been addressed.

The appropriate guidance for buyers considering a home with an existing system is to verify that the system is currently functioning — a manometer check and a current radon test rather than relying on documentation that may be years old. As we discussed in our post on what to expect after installation, systems require periodic verification. An existing system that has not been tested recently may or may not be performing at the level it was when originally installed.

For listing agents, having current radon test documentation — ideally conducted within the past two years — for a home with a mitigation system is a marketing asset. It allows the system to be presented not just as a feature but as a verified, functioning protection rather than an aging installation of unknown current effectiveness.

Building Radon Knowledge Into Your Practice

Agents who develop genuine fluency with radon — understanding what the Zone 1 designation means for Kent, Ionia, and Barry counties, how testing works, what mitigation costs and involves, and how to navigate an elevated result professionally — are better equipped to serve clients throughout West Michigan than agents who treat radon as an occasional complication.

Practical steps for building that fluency include attending a lunch and learn presentation from a certified radon professional, familiarizing yourself with the AARST-NRPP certification standards that distinguish qualified professionals from less credentialed operators, and developing a relationship with a trusted radon testing and mitigation company you can recommend consistently.

A referral relationship with a certified radon professional is not just a convenience — it is a client service asset. When a buyer asks who to call for radon testing, having a trusted, local, certified recommendation ready is the difference between a helpful answer and a shrug.

At All Michigan Mitigation, we work regularly with real estate agents across West Michigan and understand the timelines, communication needs, and professional standards that real estate transactions require. We are happy to be a resource — for testing, for mitigation, and for the educational conversations that help agents serve their clients well.

Visit us at allmichiganmitigation.com to learn more or to discuss how we can support your clients' radon needs.

All Michigan Mitigation is a West Michigan radon testing and mitigation company dedicated exclusively to helping homeowners understand and eliminate radon risk in their homes.