Marijuana and Real Estate

With the rapid increase in states legalizing marijuana, things have become too loud to be ignored. Growing marijuana in homes has been practiced for quite sometime now. 23 states in America allow medical use of marijuana, whereas, 11 states permit limited possession and recreational use. Now that the name marijuana has started appearing in the legal list, here are some things you should know as a real estate agent to linkup marijuana and real estate.

Marijuana Grow Houses

Cannabis plant can now be grown in house as per the lass in the states where its use is permitted. People either grow cannabis inside or outside their homes. Marijuana grown outside is easily irrigated, while the grow houses present inside a home can be trouble to deal with. The in house cannabis plant requires a lot of attention. As a real estate agent, you need to make sure your buyer is fine with having all the grow house material in their house. The irrigation systems are complicated, there is a lot of humidity in the house and ultraviolet lighting is used that draws tremendous amount of electricity.

Federal Homes

The federal laws still consider marijuana as illegal. Although, certain states permit the use of recreational marijuana, the federal law still calls it illegal. As a real estate professional, you might come across with the usual HUD transaction. Your clients need to be told that, federal operated or built properties do not allow the growing or use of marijuana. Similarly, HUD insured properties also deny any recreational marijuana use. Do your part of the due diligence and go through the documentation so that you are in a better position to advise your clients about how to proceed with such properties.

 Renting

Landlords need to be authoritative. They need to disallow any illegal activity at their property. You need to inform your clients that they can ban marijuana in their building. Just as many owners ban cigarettes in their buildings, they can also put a halt at marijuana smoking. However, when it comes to the medical use of marijuana, things can get a bit tricky. You must know that tenants are not protected under the Americans with Disabilities Act; this makes your clients in charge of the scenario as marijuana is still illegal under the federal laws.

Growing Marijuana in your home

Growing marijuana in homes has been around for quite sometime now. The amount of plant grown in homes across the United States is unknown. There are few clients out there who want to purchase a property which has marijuana trays and irrigation system present. Clients who express interest in purchasing homes suited for home growing should be directed to their state and local authorities to determine what is legal in their location. The same is true for clients who wish to sell or lease a property where growing has occurred, or leasing property to individuals who wish to grow in the future.