I just found out not ot long ago that I have mold and mildew in my apartment. Since we have lived here, my 11 year old daughter has had symptoms of mold allergies. We need to move out and my landlord wants me to pay rent until we move, but I cannot afford to do this. The apartments are not in the best of shape and she knew that the up stairs apartment had flooded into ours. They replaced the carpet on the floor but did not take other precautions against water damage. We have only been there a few months and I am very upset that we have to move because I planned on not moving for a while. This has really put me in a bind, what are my rights as a tenant when this place is making my daughter sick. Can she evict me or what for nonpayment of rent?

Hello l:

Your apartment is either habitable or it is NOT. There is no in between. Call the health department. If THEY pronounce the apartment un-inhabitable, then it IS. If that's so, write your landlord a letter. Inform him that he has 72 hours to FIX it, or you will move. Send your letter certified, return receipt requested.

Certainly, if you don't pay your rent, you'll be evicted.

excon

There isn't much in the way of good news. Here's what you need. Find a friend with a couch or spare room.

First and foremost, get your kids out of that house. This is a 'Better Safe than Sorry' situation. Most molds are harmless to most people. But, there is no telling how any one person can be affected. If it is a dangerous strain, kids are more susceptible. And you have no idea how much of it there is.

Second, document everything. Take pictures, take notes, take samples.

Write a letter to your landlord. Explain your problem with as much detail as possible, as calmly as possible that you are concerned about the health and safety of your children. There are habitability issues with the dwelling. You want to help resolve the problem in any way you can, but your first priority is your children. As such, you need the mold problem addressed and abated immediately.

Important: Be helpful and supportive in your letters, conversation, phone messages, all of it. These things rarely end well. If it ends up in court, now is the time to start stacking the deck in your favor.

Make copies. Send one by registered mail to the landlord. Hand deliver one. And keep one. Notifications must be done according to statute or legally they never happened.

(Keep copies of ALL correspondence)

Look up Landlord/Tenant statutes for your state and city. You probably will not find any reference to mold. But you will find references to the landlords duty to maintain the habitability of the dwelling. There are many other applicable areas, but we will start there.

There will be a statute loosely stating, Failure to maintain Habitability...

Normally two levels. Level one is on the level of no hot water. Level two is an imminent threat to the tenants health safety and or property. You are level two. Usually two days are allotted for the landlord to address the problem (plus 3 days for the mail to be delivered - hence the hand delivery - back down to two days).

Get the kids to a doctor. Get eyes, ears, nose, respiratory, checked. You already know the symptoms.

It's a lot to do. And it all needs to be done at once. But you will be covering yourself in every way possible.

Get this done. Comment back.

Mike

P.S. - About me, I helped a dear friend go through this. I was concerned for her health. While checking her house for environmental reasons for her symptoms, I opened the trapdoor leading beneath her house. I found the entire subfloor flooded. Floating on top of the lake were "Islands" of mold, some several inches thick. The landlord denied there was a problem, did nothing to help, but did take the time to file eviction proceedings. That's another story. Suffice it to say, I've been there. I can help.

More for you.

Can you're your landlord evict you for non-payment? Yes.
That is not to say it couldn't backfire. An eviction is a process in which the court awards possession of a property/dwelling. Most are straight forward, did you pay the rent? No? Why? Lost my job... Bye.

BUT... a landlord can't just accept the rent, they are responsible for maintaining habitability of the property.

Failure to maintain that habitability where there is imminent danger to the tenants (whether it's no heat in the winter, a gas leak or mold) is grounds for you to not only to withhold rent (usually after 48 hours of inaction) but find other living arrangements of equal cost and have those costs along with moving expenses, etc reimbursed. The catch is proving your case. They will try to deny there is a problem.

This is why it's so important to be able to prove the landlord was/is aware of habitability issues. If they fight you or try to evict you, SHOW UP to the hearing. If you don't, they win. If you do, you get to answer the charge, ask for a trial and ask for status as the prevailing party. The trial is usually within two weeks, more often within four days.

You can represent yourself, just have your ducks in a row. Correspondence, pix, doctors notes. Even better if the doc's note references mold allergies. It's pricey, but if you can swing it, have a professional mold abatement company test the air and take samples. This will clinch it. Overwhelm them. They are used to people who either don't show or roll over when they do.

What the judge is going to rule on, what you have to prove is the fact that the mold infestation has rendered the dwelling unlivable to you/your family and therefore carries no worth and therefore no rent is owed.

It's one of those bizarre legal quirks is that in this case the eviction procedure boils down to them trying to force you out of a place you will already be out of so they can take possession. If you do everything above board and legal, you'll prevail. Then it's your turn. Small claims court with transcripts of your win to submit as evidence.

In most states, habitability transgressions award double your damages (moving, rent, medical, labor). Same again if they play games with your security deposit. Double.

I know I only skimmed the surface. I apologize. I'm trying to give a crash course, typing with a sprained wrist. Any questions, ask.

Last bit of advice.
Be nice, be civil, be constructive, be ready to have your fangs out. They won't know what hit them.

Best regards
Mike