Nappster

Hi,

I'm a Brit renting a place in Venice Beach (going on two years) and have a question regarding my rights as a renting tenant in the US.

My house has always been mouldy and we have periodically had to clean it off with mould remover, etc.

But after coming back from our Xmas holiday we discovered black coloured mould growing on the wall behind our bed where our heads are.

Our landlady has inferred in the past that any household issues are our responsibility to fix and repair but this strikes me as a whole different ball game.

Is she within her rights to make us pay for a professional to come round to diagnose and potentially pay for removal?

Can she kick us out for being a pain the arse?

Can I force her by law to fix the problem without being kicked out by her straight away after?!

I know this is a random one, but I thought someone might have experience in stuff like this.

Happy New Year!

Bob

It's a state issue, not a US issue...so errrr....look at what the state says and more importantly what your lease says.

Generally though, stuff like mould is the landlords responsibility. If you're in a lease and you're paying the rent on time you can't generally be kicked out for no reason.

At the end of the day though, if the landlord is being an arsehole about things, there's not much you can do but either sue them or move.

AmerLisa

http://www.nolo.com/legal-encycloped...cle-30230.html
http://www.caltenantlaw.com/Habitability.htm
http://www.caltenantlaw.com/ResLaw.htm
http://www.dca.ca.gov/publications/l...k/catenant.pdf

coastieexpat

I would start taking photos and documenting all your correspondence, you may need it later on !

bevinva

I would think that is something the landlord would be responsible for (mould is a health issue). Here in Virginia if you ask the landlord to repair something, in writing, they have a fixed time to do the repair. After that you can deposit rent payments with the local court and they will not be released until repairs are done, you are also not considered late on your rent. Personally I would look into getting out of the lease because of the health concerns with the mould, it could just be the tip of an iceburg you are seeing, who knows what is behind the walls.

Rete

I'm with you. Unless the underlying cause of the mold is discovered and treated, it will continue to return. Health issues that arise from living with mold are too serious to not upstakes and move afaiac