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Larry, first of all calm down. It is just not true that "probably I will lose my duplex plus the little money I had in the bank", and anyone who told you that is an possibly uninformed. 1) I would ignore their letter demanding you transfer ownership this week, and wait for them to file an action against you in court. Odds are this is a scam, and most legal threats never pan out, especially when the threatener has to start coughing up for legal fees. 2) If you built the place starting in 1977, I doubt there would be lead paint, but you could take some paint chips in to be tested. 3) Did you have a lead paint disclosure as part of your lease package? If so, you should not have a problem, but check with other landlords about the rules in your area. 4) If there is lead paint, get the tenants out (put them into a motel), strip all the paint down to the wood, and repaint. Preferably before they can do their own lead testing. 5) Just because a kid has slightly elevated lead levels does not mean he is permanently harmed, or even that the lead came from your residence. In my area there is lead in the water, so people who drink tap water have slightly elevated lead levels. 6) Even if this does end up going to court, you can drag this out for a long, long time. Represent yourself, ask for all kinds of things (tests on the kids, exhaustive depositions, etc.), delays in the action, stretch this thing out. You're 75, it could be years before there is a decision against you. And if you go slowly, and show you will fight this thing, it is more likely that they will want to settle with you for whatever they can get. 7) Talk to a local attorney about how you can take steps now, before an action is filed, to make your assets creditor resistent. Landlording can be a rough game, with tenants constantly trying to scam you. Be tough, and show them you won't roll over for this.
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