Leak and Mold Remediation

[JLTraveling]

Anyone have any experience dealing with mold testing and remediation? It's started raining in through our ceiling air intake vent whenever it rains hard and the wind is blowing. We just recently found some areas of mold on the ceiling of the master bath around the exhaust fan and a/c vent. We searched around, and it looks like that exhaust fan vents out the side of the house. There's a plastic cap, but the siding is a bit warped right there and part of the vent pipe is exposed. It's a straight line from there to the air intake where the rain's coming in.

We're renters, so we naturally called the property manager right away. They're telling us to spray bleach water on the mold patch and somebody will get out here eventually to take a look. It's been a month now, the leak seems to be getting worse, and it smells moldy and musty in here. And my dad, who lives here, has a variety of chronic respiratory issues, so it can't be good for him.

I'm sure the property manager will eventually patch the leak, but they seem entirely unconcerned about the mold. Any idea what it would cost us to get someone out here to test and treat the mold? Or what the process entails? Would the house be torn up for days or weeks? Moving out isn't really an option, because there are currently zero rentals in our price range in any part of the city we would want to live in. I'm hoping the property manager does the right thing, but I'd like to know my options just in case.

 

[lanejudy]

Call again, ask for immediate inspection. If still no response write (or have dad write) to the property manager telling them if there is no action towards this issue in 7 days, he will begin putting his rent into escrow. Open a separate bank account with “rent escrow” in the name. Instead to paying his rent to the property management company he transfers that amount to the escrow account. Once the issue is satisfactorily resolved, close the escrow account and turn over that amount to the property manager.

 

[kdonnel]

Call again, ask for immediate inspection. If still no response write (or have dad write) to the property manager telling them if there is no action towards this issue in 7 days, he will begin putting his rent into escrow. Open a separate bank account with “rent escrow” in the name. Instead to paying his rent to the property management company he transfers that amount to the escrow account. Once the issue is satisfactorily resolved, close the escrow account and turn over that amount to the property manager.

Be careful withholding rent. That is very state specific advice and if done in the wrong state will result in your eviction.

Look up what you are allowed to do in your state. Some allow you to make the necessary repair and deduct the cost from the rent. But again don’t do this until you know it is ok in your state.

 

[LuvOrlando]

Do you have renters insurance?

Mold can ruin your stuff and trigger a claim for your things in the bathroom that might end up smelling moldy or getting wet and ruined (hairdryer, curling and straightening items, medicines & cosmetics are often in bathrooms), if you tell them what's going on they might intervene to avoid paying out.


Remediation is a fortune but you can get a roofer estimate, just don't give too much info or they won't come, bleach isn't usually safe for people with respiratory issues, ask your dad's Dr for a note and start taking photos.

 

[Lehuaann]

Instead of calling, I would present evidence to the manager in the form of licensed inspection, mold testing, and photos. The landlord is responsible for providing safe and livable housing.

Most visual inspections are free, but mold testing prices vary. It would be worth it for me to get that done first, even if I had to pay out of pocket. Mold is not something to mess with.

 

[JLTraveling]

Thanks everyone. I know we have to be super careful, because we're in Louisiana, which is very landlord friendly/tenant unfriendly. We did put the initial complaint in writing on the web portal, so we have documentation of when we first complained. I think we're going to give it another week or so and then have someone come out and try to find/patch the leak. Then once that's fixed, get a mold inspector in. Then we can present everything to the property manager in writing. Does that sound like a reasonable plan? There's not a lot of visible mold yet, just a small patch, so I'm hoping it's not spreading too badly in the ceiling at this point.

The thing that really makes me mad is that there's a mold addendum in our lease. With strict instructions for reporting it, which we obviously did. But there's also a hold harmless clause, which states that we can't sue the property manager for any mold issues, only the owner. But I suspect they haven't told the owner, because this house was gutted and rebuilt right before we moved in, and I can't imagine that he'd be okay with letting it mold.

Contacting the renter's insurance company is a really good idea. Maybe we should go ahead and do that tomorrow?

 

[DL1WDW2]

Just found this … looks like a good place to start to protect your rights.
You do not want to risk Move Out Notice…

 

[DL1WDW2]

Be careful with the legal process…
I read steps 1&2 ; and think step 3 might be expensive but I would at least get new air filters and keep receipt and search for the highest rated filter as proof that you were truly concerned about safety .

 

[tvguy]

Does your city have a renters legal aide society? They certainly can help you navigate all the legalities.

 

[JLTraveling]

Be careful with the legal process…
I read steps 1&2 ; and think step 3 might be expensive but I would at least get new air filters and keep receipt and search for the highest rated filter as proof that you were truly concerned about safety .

We always get the highest rated air filters. Good idea to keep the receipts. Thanks!

Does your city have a renters legal aide society? They certainly can help you navigate all the legalities.

I have no idea, but it's definitely worth checking. Thanks!

 

[kymom99]

It makes me incredibly sad to think you have to continue to pay rent to live in a place that will not correct a dangerous health threat.

 

[nw6675]

One of the homes we purchased had mold in one room that was missed by the inspector. We had the wall removed to the brick, it was treated with some chemical, and then had industrial fans for about a week. It cost at least $5k, maybe more, that is all I recall.

I agree with contacting the insurance. Also, we had an issue years ago with a landlord. We contacted our state's consumer complaint division and they got involved. And @tvguy might disagree and am interested in his perspective, but around here people use the news troubleshooter to get results.

 

[tvguy]

One of the homes we purchased had mold in one room that was missed by the inspector. We had the wall removed to the brick, it was treated with some chemical, and then had industrial fans for about a week. It cost at least $5k, maybe more, that is all I recall.

I agree with contacting the insurance. Also, we had an issue years ago with a landlord. We contacted our state's consumer complaint division and they got involved. And @tvguy might disagree and am interested in his perspective, but around here people use the news troubleshooter to get results.

Very few TV stations still have those Consumer Advocates. We used to get lots of calls at my last station for the Consumer Advocate we used to have, and they discontinued doing it 30 years before! Got too expensive because it got to the point that the stations had to have a full time lawyer assigned to the program so they didn't get sued. But that is where my advice about going to the local rental advocate or legal aide society came from, because that is where our Consumer unit used to send people with rent issues first since they know the law and the buttons to push to get things done.
I guess I was lucky, I had a black mold issue, and it wasn't any big deal to have legally removed. I had a 5 foot by 8 foot wall behind the tile wall in the shower full of black mold. They had to replace all the studs and the wood siding outside and soak it all with the anti-mold solution. Only cost $1,200 and took like 4 hours to do. In the scope of a $130,000 remodel project, it was well within our 10% contingency budget.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Because tenant/landlord laws vary by state you might want to consult this for yours assuming it's still up to date. It's from the AG of your state

https://ldh.la.gov/assets/oph/Cente...MoldComplaints/AGguideToLandlordTenantLaw.pdf

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

around here people use the news troubleshooter to get results.

This is used a lot in our area although for the OP I would suggest they ensure they've done other steps as per their state's laws first.

In early August for example there was this for my area: https://fox4kc.com/news/problem-sol...s-ago-prevents-kck-man-from-renewing-license/

 

[JLTraveling]

Because tenant/landlord laws vary by state you might want to consult this for yours assuming it's still up to date. It's from the AG of your state

https://ldh.la.gov/assets/oph/Cente...MoldComplaints/AGguideToLandlordTenantLaw.pdf

Thank you. This is very helpful. Looks like we do have the right to have repairs done and withhold rent/bill the landlord.

 

[lanejudy]

I hope OP’s leak has been fixed in the 18 months since starting this thread about it.

 

[cabanafrau]

Remediation is a fortune but you can get a roofer estimate, just don't give too much info or they won't come, bleach isn't usually safe for people with respiratory issues, ask your dad's Dr for a note and start taking photos.

I think I heard that exact thing somewhere before. Was it maybe in this thread?
Yep.