How Buffalo Mold Desk works

Buffalo Mold Desk is a free referral service for homeowners and renters in Buffalo and Erie County. We aren't a mold remediation contractor or a mold assessor, and we don't do any of the work. When you send a request or call, we pass it to one independent local company that works your area. They contact you, look at the problem and price it.

Who pays us

The company we refer you to pays us for the introduction. You never pay us. We don't set their prices and we don't take a cut of your job. That arrangement has an obvious incentive problem (we would like you to call), which is why the guides here also tell you how to check a license, when a small patch is a do-it-yourself job, and when testing is money you don't need to spend.

What we ask of the company

• The state license number, before anyone signs. Remediation over 10 square feet takes a New York Mold Remediation Contractor License. Ask for the number and look it up on data.ny.gov; it takes a minute.
• Someone else's plan on bigger jobs. The company that removes the mold works from a licensed assessor's written plan and doesn't assess its own job.
• The scope and price on paper. What comes out, what gets cleaned, how long it runs, and the three business days New York gives you to cancel a home improvement contract.
• The water dealt with, then a clearance. Mold comes back when the leak or seepage stays. The assessor's clearance report is how you know it's finished.

If a visit falls short of that, tell us at (716) 300-6502.

Licenses in New York

New York licenses mold assessment and mold remediation separately under Article 32 of the Labor Law, and one company may not do both on the same property. Anyone can check a license on data.ny.gov. Drying out water damage needs no state license in New York; ask for proof of insurance and a written contract.

Our sources

Guides list their sources at the end. The ZIP code tables and charts are our own analysis of public data from the Census Bureau, FEMA, the NY Department of Labor and NOAA. See the method.

Photo credits

Photos are from Unsplash, used under the Unsplash License: Kathleen Culbertson, Pavol Svantner, Shamir Hunley, Tracy Adams, Brooke Balentine, Josh Lemmon, remapstudio, Vero Eve. None of them show any particular company's work.