Radon in Omaha: How to Test Your Home This Winter (and What Buyers and Sellers Should Know)

Updated Nov. 3, 2026

Radon is the one home problem you can’t see, smell, or spot at a showing. Here’s what the numbers look like around Omaha, how to test this winter, and where it shows up when you buy or sell.

I’m Lacory Gordon, a REALTOR with Revel Realty serving Douglas, Sarpy, Washington, and Cass counties. Radon comes up in a lot of my deals, usually during the inspection period. Everything below comes from Nebraska DHHS, the EPA, the Sarpy/Cass Health Department, and the Nebraska Real Estate Commission, checked Nov. 3, 2026.

What radon is and why it matters

Radon is a natural radioactive gas that comes up from the soil. You can’t see it, smell it, or taste it. It gets into houses through cracks and gaps in the foundation and builds up most in basements and lower levels.

The EPA estimates radon causes about 21,000 lung cancer deaths in the U.S. every year, about 2,900 of them in people who never smoked. It is the leading cause of lung cancer among non-smokers. Smokers living with high radon face a much higher risk.

Radon levels around Omaha

Nebraska DHHS reports the average pre-mitigation radon result for every county to the Legislature. The most recent county report, which matches the state’s radon data page, covers tests from Oct. 1, 2018 to Sept. 30, 2023:

• Douglas County: 21,089 tests, average 3.9 pCi/L.
• Sarpy County: 6,605 tests, average 4.8 pCi/L.
• Washington County: 590 tests, average 6.8 pCi/L.
• Cass County: 750 tests, average 7.5 pCi/L.

All four are above the 2.7 pCi/L level that state law asks DHHS to flag. And the state radon program says more than half of radon tests in Nebraska come back above the 4.0 pCi/L action level.

Here’s the thing I tell clients, though. A county average doesn’t tell you anything about one house. DHHS says homes with high radon turned up in every county that had test results. Two houses on the same street can test completely differently.

Why winter is a good time to test

A short-term test needs a closed house. The EPA’s Citizen’s Guide to Radon says to keep windows and outside doors closed as much as possible during the test, and for at least 12 hours before a 2 or 3 day test. In an Omaha winter, your house is already closed up, so there’s nothing to plan around.

If you want the most accurate picture, DHHS says long-term tests (3 months to a year) give a better average because they account for seasonal changes. Short-term tests (2 to 7 days) are the quick, cheap first look.

How to test your own home

DHHS and the EPA give the same basic steps:

1. Get a kit. DHHS lists short-term charcoal kits at about $10 to $25 and long-term alpha track kits at about $20 to $30.
2. Put it in the lowest lived-in level of the home, like a finished basement bedroom or family room. Skip the kitchen, bathroom, laundry room, and utility room.
3. Set it at least 20 inches off the floor, away from drafts, high heat, high humidity, and exterior walls.
4. Keep windows and outside doors shut and limit trips in and out. Your furnace fan is fine. Fans that pull in outside air are not.
5. Leave it for the full time on the package, then mail it to the lab right away.

The EPA says if a short-term result is 4 pCi/L or higher, follow up with either a long-term test or a second short-term test before you decide to fix. If the first result is more than twice that, test again right away.

Where to get a kit in the metro

• Sarpy and Cass counties: Sarpy/Cass Health Department gives free short-term kits to residents while supplies last. Pick one up at 701 Olson Drive, Suite 101, Papillion (Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.) or 201 Main Street, Louisville (Tuesday to Thursday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.). Call (402) 339-4334 for details.
• Douglas and Washington counties: DHHS says some local programs hand out free or discounted kits, so it’s worth a call to your local health department to ask. Kits are also sold at hardware stores and home centers.
• By mail: DHHS lists kit labs including AccuStar, Air Chek, Alpha Energy Laboratories, and RSSI Laboratories. It doesn’t endorse one over another.

Questions go to the Nebraska Radon Program at (888) 242-1100.

Landlords: the license rule

This one surprises people. DHHS says Nebraska lets you test the home you live in without a license, but any other property has to be tested by someone DHHS licenses. Owning the property doesn’t exempt you. So if you own a rental, hire a business from the state’s licensed measurement list.

Radon when you buy or sell

Nebraska sellers fill out the state’s Seller Property Condition Disclosure Statement. It asks whether radon gas has been on the property, asks for copies of any test results, and asks whether the home has been mitigated and when. Under Neb. Rev. Stat. 76-2,120 the form covers what the seller knows, and a seller can mark that they don’t know. So a clean-looking disclosure doesn’t mean the house was ever tested.

Buyers: ask for past results and any mitigation paperwork, and think about a radon test during your inspection period. The EPA’s Home Buyer’s and Seller’s Guide to Radon lists three short-term options that work in a sale: two passive tests side by side for at least 48 hours, two back-to-back tests in the same spot, or a continuous monitor for at least 48 hours. A real estate test should include steps to prevent or detect tampering. The guide also suggests the contract spell out who tests, where, when, and who pays if the home needs a system.

Sellers: the EPA says it’s better to fix a radon problem before you list, because you have more time to deal with it. If you’re thinking about selling this spring, testing this winter gives you that time. My holiday selling guide and as-is selling guide cover the rest of the prep.

New construction: Nebraska’s Radon Resistant New Construction law, in effect since Sept. 1, 2019, requires a passive radon system in new homes where local codes adopt the state building code. The EPA still says every new home should be tested after you move in, and a fan can be added to the passive system if levels are high.

If your number comes back high

Don’t panic. The EPA says some radon reduction systems cut levels by up to 99 percent, and most homes can be fixed for about the same cost as other common home repairs. Get estimates from one or more contractors.

In Nebraska, anyone doing radon mitigation for the public has to be licensed. DHHS keeps a list of licensed mitigation businesses. After the system goes in, the EPA recommends a follow-up test, ideally by an independent tester. Your result also goes on the disclosure form whenever you sell, along with the mitigation date.

Buying this winter? My winter buying guide covers what else to watch for, and my closing costs breakdown helps you budget for inspections and testing.

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