Editorial: Testing for P a must

A methamphetamine testing company had found 87 homes with traces of the drug present in just over three years. Photo / NZME.

We all know the dangers of using P.

We've all heard the horror stories of what the drug does to people. There's no question it's dangerous and harmful.

But what about its effects on the buildings where it is cooked and used?

In Tuesday's paper we reported that nine state homes in Tauranga had been found to contain traces of the drug, also known as methamphetamine, in the past year.

On top of that, a methamphetamine testing company had found 87 homes with traces of the drug present in just over three years.

These are alarmingly high numbers.

In all fairness, only the homes that look dodgy get tested but that still means P has been cooked or smoked in more than 90 homes in our city.

This just creates one more hurdle to overcome when you're buying a house.

We're in the market for our first home and came across one we thought would be perfect.

It was definitely a do-up. The wallpaper had been torn off the walls in different parts of the house, the carpet was destroyed - it was filthy.

A first look around left me wondering if it was a P-house. I almost dismissed the thought as paranoia but before we could ask the agent she told us a test was being done.

It came back positive showing the drug had probably been used, but not made, in the house.

Being a fairly new phenomenon, lawyers and drug experts struggled to give us advice on what it meant in terms of health and resale.

Being a do-up it didn't put us off completely but definitely dropped the price we were willing to pay.

I'm definitely more wary now.

I still wouldn't insist on testing every house we consider buying but I will not hesitate to ask and get a test done if the state of the house sets off alarm bells.

It's not an issue that is going to go away - if anything it will only get worse as more people get hooked and move from house to house.

Carefully consider the consequences when deciding whether or not a house is worth testing.

If you're undecided, it's its worth spending the $130 to get the house tested.

What are your thoughts? Have your say below.