S ave Money, Save Your Building!

Going smoke-free saves you money - and helps save your building. Some interesting facts:

• Maintenance Savings . One paint contractor estimated that to paint a one-bedroom apartment of a smoker could cost $800-900, almost double that of painting a nonsmoker's apartment. If your apartment units are furnished, creating a smoke-free environment will also reduce the wear and tear on the furniture.

• Risk of Fire . Of the property completely destroyed in 2002, an estimated $6.055 billion occurred in residential structures, an estimated $9.26 million of which occurred in apartments. (NFPA Fire Analysis and Research, Fire Loss in the U.S. During 2002.)

• Risk of Fire . Nationally, smoking was the cause of 9% of apartment fires. (NFIRS, 2002)

• Improved Resale Opportunities . Recent research suggests that smoke-free apartment buildings may have increased re-sale value, should you ever decide to sell your building. Agents who have assisted people selling or shopping for everything from starter-home Capes to Victorian mansions, agree: as the number of public places in which a person can smoke has shrunk, so has the number of home buyers who are even willing to consider a house with smoking in its past. (New York Times, "Real Estate & Secondhand Smoke: On Tobacco Road, It's a Tougher Sell," February 8, 2004.)

Along with significant risks of property damage in a building without a smoke-free policy, you are also vulnerable to lawsuits by nonsmoking tenants suffering from the effects of secondhand smoke.