What should I do if I find mold in my rental house?

Question

I am in the process of moving out of a rental house. Yesterday I noticed the corner of the wall paper in one room was peeling and noticed behind it was mold! It freaked me out so I pulled all the wall paper down (it was old and ugly anyways) and there was mold all over the bottom of the wall! I think someone intentionally tried to cover up the mold with the wall paper because it was the only room in the house that had wall paper. My son has asthma and has been hospitalized 2 times since we have lived in the house and my husband is constantly sick with respritory problems. Since we are moving out next week I am concerned that the rental company may try to cover it again and the next renters could get seriously sick. What do I do? is there a government agency I can contact?

Answer 1

First of all, not all mold is toxic. The toxic mold is rare.

You can have it tested by a commercial lab to determine if it is the toxic kind. http://www.prolabinc.com/products.asp

Your family's symptoms suggest it may be the toxic kind. But those symptoms can be caused by many other factors other than mold.

Photograph the room, close-ups on the moldy spots. Send the photos to the property management company, and to the property owner. You can find that information by searching your county property tax records. The owner's name and address will be on the records.

Also send the photos to the new renter and let them know there might be a problem.

I once rejected a rental property years ago because of a mold spot on the northeast corner of the bedroom. I had no idea if it was toxic or not, but it grossed me out and I rented elsewhere.

Answer 2

You need to send a registered letter to the management of your rental apartment telling them about the mold problem. You could send a copy of the same letter to the Building Inspectors office in your town. Then they wont be able to just cover it up. Also make sure you dont take the mold on your things to the new house. Wash everything you can with a solution of bleach and water. You can slow the nasty stuff down with that solution also just spray it down and most will die.

Answer 3

Since you mentioned your son's illness; I would contact an attorney after taking photographs of the mold put a newspaper's front page by the mold in where you can read the date of the paper in the pictures and take a sample to a lab to identify the type of mold it is. Our agency has run into these types of things before and I am not aware of any time that the owner of the property has prevailed.
For the EPA's publication, "A Brief Guide to Mold, Moisture, and Your Home"
www.epa.gov/ http://www.epa.gov/iaq/molds/images/moldguide.pdf
EPA: Reporting Violations: http://www.epa.gov/ebtpages/complianceenforcement.html
Buena Suerte

Answer 4

Do tell the owner - you should disclose this before taking it ealsewhere - but afterwards, I would report to your states housing authority - and if this rental property is section 8 - I can assure you there will be a physical investigation. Take photos to cover yourself - and don't plan to use the landlord as a reference.......

There is that outside chance the mold grew on the wallpaper glue because it provides a warm/dark/moist enviroment....

Answer 5

I dealt with this before. Go to your local health department. Let them know your son and hubby got sick while living in the house, and that you found mold while you was in the process of moving. They can send someone out to see what kind of mold it exactly is. Then send a certified letter to your landlord letting him know you found mold and it made your family sick. Once you know the exact kind of mold, take your son and hubby to the dr, there are tests they can do to see if they are definatly sick from that form of mold. Good luck

Answer 6

We found lots of mold in my mother's house when she died. She had a lot of respiratory problems and now we know why. The house had to be fumigated and rid of the mold before my brother moved in there to live. You are blessed to be moving. Some of that illness will improve due to getting out of the moldy situation. I don't think the movers will be effected in such a short time as they will be around it, but you might warn them just so they know. I'm not sure who to call, but you might start with Environmental Health at the local county Health Department. They will probably know where to refer you if it's not a case for them. I'm just glad you are getting out of that mess. Best of luck to you!

Answer 7

contact the board of health. They should be able to help you or tell you where you can get help. Take pictures. Also contact your son's doctor and tell him of your findings and see what his advice might be. Make sure you have it on record before you move. You may be able to sue these people for the hospitalization of your son. You may even want to call one of those tv stations that come out and investigate. Then for sure it will be watched and fixed. Good luck.

Answer 8

Contact the Health Department.

Answer 9

Well : you must get the " Apartment Unit Inspected because
it could be an health problem with mold build up & tell Land
lord about this or Notifi ( Department of Health ) right away"
refer http://www.rental.services.help.com

Answer 10

mold is poisonous. U want to get out of the homestead at the same time as ur landlord fixes the region. He desires to totally eliminate the mold and replace the carpet. he's negligent to allow it get to the point the position the floor rotted! If he does no longer something, record him to condo tenancy authority and start up searching for yet another plaace to stay.. u might want to no longer be charged employ at the same time as the upkeep r being finished both