What is the tenant / landlord law concerning mold?

Question

Can a landlord lawfully charge someone rent for a house that has a severe mold problem after they are made aware of the mold?   

We had a court case today in small claims court against the landlord, because he charged us half of what was remaining on the lease which was $1,200 to break our lease and move out.   He also kept our deposit and we damaged the property in no way.

At the time we broke the lease and paid him the $1,200, I did not know the landlord could not charge any future rent after they are made aware of a mold problem.   The magistrate didn't make a decision today.  She would make one within a week she said.   I provided pictures of the mold, and a copy of the check I wrote the landlord for the $1,200.

When we brought the mold to the landlord's attention and told him we cannot afford to stay here and pay $695/month for a house that has mold in it, the quality of the air was pretty bad as well. His exact words were as follows:  "oh, you can just wipe that down with mildew cleaner, that's not even a concern."   Then he said, "you have 4 months remaining on your lease, and I've got to get something out of this."  He did not even offer to come look at it.    And since it was our first time renting a home, we weren't aware a landlord couldn't charge for rent when mold is present because it causes a health concern.

I'm just trying to find a law somewhere that supports my claim that a landlord cannot charge rent when mold is present.  The magistrate said she needed to review the statue of limitations concerning the matters at hand.  So anyone with any advice would definitely help.  Thanks!

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

You cannot cry mold & break a lease without paying.  

When a tenant has legal grounds to break a lease but does not follow the proper procedure then they get charged & treated the same as any tenant breaking it for no reason.  "a landlord couldn't charge for rent when mold is present because it causes a health concern." There is no such law in my state or any other that I have ever heard of.  

What you should have done was:  Send him a certified letter stating the mold problem then called the housing authority for an inspection.  They wld have tested the mold & dedtermined ifd it was the harmful kind or not.  Most mold is harmless uless you are alergic to it.  

If it was found to be harmfull:  He would then have had X # of days to take care of the problem.  That # varies by state.  When he continued to ignore the problem, then you would have had to sue him to legally break the lease with out penalty.

If it was not found to be harmful you have no legal grounds to break the lease. 

You went about this the wrong way & are going to have to wait for the judges decision on if you are going to have to pay for it or not. 

Re: Double rent.  You  have no way of knowing if he charged them for those last few days of August or not.  If you only paid through the end of August then you would have to prove he collected payment for those couple days. It is not uncommon for landlords to waive the last couple days of a month.  If you paid anything for September then that would be double rent & he must refund that. 

Now the lease break fee IS NOT rent. If what you paid was a lease break fee & a new tenant paid rent for August then that is NOT collecting double rent.

LILL · Answer

There is no such law and whom ever told you that you do not have to pay rent because you suspect a dangerous mold is WRONG.  

What you should of done is have the mold tested (only 2 of over 3000 molds are considered harmful).  If the mold was found to be a hazard, you would then inform the landlord of the problem.  If the landlord failed to rectify the problem, then you would take the landlord to court and have the lease terminated...with no penalty to you.

Judging by your post...you did everything wrong.

Landlord · Answer

You will not find any laws about mold, none exist.   Mold issues are usually caused by poor housekeeping, and most landlords do not offer maid service.

However, you are correct on the double rent.   You are only responsible to pay rent until which time the unit is rerented.

? · Answer

Since only 2 kinds of mold are unhealthy you need a professional to test it.  Pictures are inadequate.

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What is the tenant / landlord law concerning mold?

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