Anonymous
July 8, 2019, 12:45 pm
20.2k Views
7 Comments
By an edhat reader
I’m renting an apartment downtown and recently discovered black mold in the bathroom. The landlord is supposed to be fixing it but in the meantime, I’ve been trying not to stay in my apartment. The landlord has not offered to house me anywhere else. What are my rights in this situation?
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I think it depends on the extent of the mold, if it was there before you moved in – that is, if the landlord knew or should have known of it and if you have a written statement, which both tenant and landlord signed, from the Landlord saying he knew of the mold. The landlord has a duty to remediate the situation, but only a lawyer can give you legal advice as to whether in California there’s a duty to rehouse you. You might want to check with Legal Aid.
Googled California Tenant Rights Mold – Your rental home should be safe and habitable. In California, if you report mold issues to your landlord and they do not make efforts to repair the mold, you may have the right to:
Withhold paying rent until the mold is properly repaired or remediated by your landlord;
Apply one month’s of rent towards hiring a repair person to fix the mold and damp conditions that cause the mold to grow;
Report the mold to health code officials; and
File a lawsuit against the landlord for damages.
Black mold is what happens when you don’t clean your bathroom.
Order a Stachybotrys test kit online and if its positive, move out immediately. You and you alone are responsible for your health and well being. But know that a large number of homes and apartments in SB have Stachybotrys present. Mold thrives in the high humidity and moderate temps of coastal SoCal and is very likely present in any older building in town. If you live on the Mesa or in Summerland or Carp, get your home tested. Chances are its in your home too.
First off: how much do you value your health? You really should just get the Hell out of there. Black mold can cause you health problems you don’t even want to know about. If you’re determined to stay in place, do not go the bleach route. Inhaling that stuff is really bad for you. Use white vinegar or hydrogen peroxide. Both work really well when combating black mold/mildew.
I became black mold sensitive in SB when my neighbor in my mobile home park let their floors rot out and give me VFIB. Don’t use bleach to clean mold as it will come back if black mold. Use Home Armor or RMR-86 Mold and Mildew stain remover. if you do get sick from black mold (only 25% of people do) you will not be able to clean the place that made you sick well enough to live there. Mold releases a chemical that gives mold sensitive people problems. It is invisible and has a half life of around 25 years and can’t be cleaned off many surfaces. Take black mold serious as I had to move out of town to find a more mold free environment.
You can get a simple mold test kit at a hardware store for $10. it is just a plastic container with a medium mold can grow on. They want you to send in what grows to be analyzed, but black mold is easy to spot – It looks black and scary !