More than 103,000 rental units spread across the city proper are potentially vulnerable to lead contamination because they were built before 1978 when lead paint was outlawed. According to a new study from the university’s Center on Urban Poverty and Community Development at the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, over one-third of these units are in poor condition and of very low market value. This can present the dual challenge of requiring potentially costly repairs in buildings where there is little equity to leverage financing, and results in potential risk of lead poisoning to children who may live in them.