Bed Bugs -- Ick!

I love the Diane Rehm show, but I just listened to a very disturbing installment regarding bed bugs.  Apparently they are on the rise, particularly in New York City, although several people called in from Cincy, Kansas City, and other larger cities reporting they had problems.  It is also a big issue in college dorms.

A few key points:

1.  They are very difficult to get rid of.

2.  They are very easy to transmit from place to place, including from hotel room to home and from unit to unit in a multi-family development.

3.  They are difficult to detect unless you know what the signs are.

4.  They don't really like mattresses.  They don't like light, so they hide in crevices, clutter, behind pictures, baseboards, etc.

Of course, I think this has all kinds of interesting Property implications.  For example, should states require disclosure of bed bugs along with roof leaks and other latent defects in home sales?  Should landlords be required to disclose bed bugs to tenants?  Should tenants be required to tell their landlords if they have bed bugs in order to prevent transmission to adjoining units? 

I am suddenly very itchy.

Tanya Marsh

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