Asbestos testing in New Jersey costs about $75 to $150 a sample in 2026 and a full lead paint inspection runs $300 to $700 — both paid to an independent lab or inspector, not to us. When abatement is actually needed it usually adds $1,500 to $8,000 to a remodel. Here's the honest part up front: New Jersey licenses asbestos and lead abatement, and we are not that license. We arrange the testing, plan the containment and the sequence, bring in a NJ-licensed abatement contractor to do the removal, and then our crew does the rebuild. One schedule, one written price, no surprises mid-demo.
Free in-home consultation · we tell you what needs testing and what doesn't · itemized price on the spot
Licensed & insured · 2,000+ NJ projects · 7 years · a real person answers 24/7
Asbestos testing in New Jersey costs about $75 to $150 a sample in 2026 and a full lead paint inspection runs $300 to $700 — both paid to an independent lab or inspector, not to us. Typical price: $495 – $20K. Licensed & insured, written itemized price before work starts, no deposit, one dedicated crew. Serving all 21 New Jersey counties from Paramus. Call (201) 676-3099 or book a free estimate.
Lead paint was in general use in American homes until 1978, which covers most of the housing stock in Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Passaic and Union counties. Intact paint under later coats is usually not the problem. The problem is friction and dust: double-hung window sashes grinding in their jambs, painted doors rubbing the stop, stair treads, and chewable sills where a small child can reach. Outside, chalking paint on old siding ends up in the soil right along the drip line where kids play.
New Jersey also requires lead-based paint inspections on most pre-1978 rental units, either at tenant turnover or on a set cycle. If you're a landlord, that's a deadline that belongs on your calendar, not ours — but it's worth knowing before you plan a turnover renovation, because the timing of the two things together can save you a whole trip.
For a homeowner, the practical rule is simpler: if the house is older than 1978 and we're going to disturb painted surfaces, we work lead-safe by default. That means plastic containment, HEPA vacuums, wet scraping instead of dry sanding, no open-flame or high-heat stripping, and a cleaning verification wipe at the end. That's normal remodeling done properly, not abatement, and it doesn't require a licensed abatement contractor.
We identify suspect material during the walkthrough, before demolition is priced. We arrange sampling through an independent lab or a NJ-licensed inspector — you pay them directly, and we never take a referral fee, because the person who tests should never profit from the result.
If the result is positive and the material has to come out, a NJ-licensed asbestos or lead abatement contractor does that work. They set the containment, run negative air, do the removal, handle the manifested disposal and the clearance. We don't touch it, we don't pretend we can, and we don't let anyone on our crew touch it either. What we do is the planning and the sequencing: containment location, which walls open first, when the abatement crew gets the house, when clearance comes back, and when our carpenters walk back in. That sequence is the whole difference between a two-week delay and a two-day one.
Then it's ours again. Framing repairs, new subfloor, insulation, drywall, trim, flooring, paint — the rebuild you actually wanted, on the price you signed.
Asbestos that's intact, undisturbed and not going to be disturbed is generally safer left alone than ripped out. Old floor tile in a basement that's still stuck down tight can very often be floated over — self-leveler and a new floor go right on top, no abatement, no clearance, no delay. Pipe wrap in good condition behind a wall you're not opening stays. Transite siding that's sound can be sided over in some cases instead of removed.
We'll tell you when that's the right call, and it costs us money to say it. The times it isn't: anything crumbling, water-damaged or already broken open; anything in the path of the work; anything that would be drilled, cut, sanded or scraped; and anything a future buyer's inspector will flag while you're standing in attorney review. Encapsulating today and removing in five years when you finally do the basement usually costs more than doing it once.
Based in Paramus, working in pre-1978 homes across all 21 New Jersey counties — 219+ towns. Free in-home consultation, an itemized written price, and a straight answer about what needs testing and what's fine to leave alone.
typical fixed-price range — your exact number goes in writing after a free visit
Testing is the cheap part: $75 – $150 per asbestos sample, $300 – $700 for a whole-house lead paint inspection, paid directly to the independent lab or inspector. A small licensed abatement — a run of pipe wrap, a bathroom's worth of floor tile and mastic, one popcorn ceiling — runs $1.5K – $4K. A whole first floor of tile and mastic, or several ceilings, runs $4K – $8K. Cement-asbestos siding removal on a full house is $6K – $20K. Lead-safe work practices on an ordinary remodel don't need an abatement contractor at all; they add roughly 5% to 15% to the affected phase for containment, HEPA equipment, wet methods and cleaning verification. Our minimum visit — walkthrough, sample collection coordination and a written plan — is $495 and comes off the job if you hire us.
How we beat the big chains: The trap here is the company that tests and then quotes its own abatement, which is a straight conflict of interest. We don't sell tests and we don't sell abatement — we price the rebuild. No franchise fees, no commissioned salesmen, no rented subcontractors — that's typically 15–30% under national-brand quotes for the same or better spec. Bring us any written quote and we'll match the scope line by line.
“The contractor ripped up my kitchen floor, then told me afterward that the tile underneath was probably asbestos.”
“The company that tested my basement handed me a $12,000 abatement quote from their own crew on the same visit.”
“The painters belt-sanded the old window sills in my 1940s house with my kids in the next room.”
You found a crew that is actually near you. First Call Contracting is based in Paramus, in Bergen County, and our own licensed techs handle asbestos & lead paint in all 21 New Jersey counties — no call center, no subcontractor sent from two states away. Most of Bergen, Passaic, Hudson and Essex is 15 to 30 minutes from our shop, and emergencies go to the nearest crew, 24/7.
Closest to us: Bergen CountyPassaic CountyHudson CountyEssex CountyMorris CountyUnion CountyAll 21 counties & 219+ towns →
Call (201) 676-3099, text us a photo, or book a free in-home estimate — you get a written price before any work starts.
If the material is going to be disturbed and the house predates about 1980, testing is the only honest way to find out. It's $75 to $150 a sample and results come back in a few days. Nine-inch floor tile, popcorn ceilings, pipe wrap and vermiculite attic insulation are the ones we sample almost every time.
No. New Jersey licenses asbestos and lead abatement contractors, and we're not one — we're the general contractor. We coordinate a licensed abatement contractor, plan the containment and the schedule around them, and do the rebuild after clearance. It's all on one written price and one timeline.
A small residential scope — a run of pipe wrap, a bathroom of floor tile and mastic, one popcorn ceiling — is usually $1,500 to $4,000. A whole first floor of tile or several ceilings runs $4,000 to $8,000. Full-house cement-asbestos siding removal runs $6,000 to $20,000. Testing and clearance are separate and paid to the lab.
Often, yes. Intact, undisturbed material that nobody is cutting, drilling or sanding is generally safer left alone and encapsulated than removed. Old basement floor tile can usually be floated over. What can't stay is anything crumbling, water-damaged, or in the path of the work you're doing.
It's federal certification for contractors disturbing painted surfaces in pre-1978 housing — containment, HEPA vacuums, wet methods, and a cleaning verification at the end. For most remodeling in an older NJ home that's what you need, not full abatement. Full lead abatement, meaning removal of the hazard itself, requires a NJ-licensed abatement contractor, which we coordinate.
Realistically one to three weeks: a few days for lab results, one to two weeks to get a licensed abatement crew scheduled in North Jersey, one to three days of abatement, and a day or two for clearance. We test before we set your start date so that time lands where it doesn't cost you.
If you're anywhere in New Jersey, yes. First Call Contracting is based in Paramus and handles asbestos & lead paint across all 21 counties with our own licensed crew. Most of Bergen, Passaic, Hudson and Essex is 15 to 30 minutes from our shop, and emergencies are dispatched to the nearest crew 24/7. Call (201) 676-3099 or book a free in-home estimate.
Independent testing · NJ-licensed abatement we coordinate · lead-safe work by default · the rebuild on one written price
Or call Alex direct: (201) 676-3099
A real person picks up every hour of every day. We tell you what to shut off first, then send the nearest crew.