Tenancy dispute- mould, any advice?

[Sashavelour65]

I rent out my flat currently (intending to sell as soon as my fixed rate ends later this year)
Before any landlord haters want to bash or hate, I make £0 profit from the flat and I am in the red every month.

Anyway, I lived there for 18 months prior to renting it out and it was mould free. The new tenant has been there for 2 months and has reported mould today, sending pictures. This looks to be caused by condensation from the windows, as the mould is directly around them and in some ceiling corners.

All windows are functional, and the bathroom does not have an extractor fan but the property management were aware of this when I let the flat out. The tenancy also states the property must be adequately ventilated, and the inventory shows the walls were mould free at the time of the tenant moving in.

I have somebody going over this week to survey and professionally clean the flat, it seems that if it's found to be caused by poor ventilation from the tenant then I have grounds to deduct from their deposit.
Has anyone got any experience of this? And no im not trying to be greedy, I've paid a few things already, but if it's something caused by the tenant then no I'd rather not be several hundred out of pocket.

Just looking for any advice or experiences?

If it were a building issue, surely it would've happened in the 18 months prior?

They can tell people to do anything- who is going to stop them?

it doesn’t create an obligation for the advice to be followed

Well yes, especially bash council tenants eh? 🙄

No because like anything fabric issues deteriorate and deteriorate until one day there is a breach and that builds up into damp/ mould/ leaking etc.

I lived in the house for years before it was rented out myself - I replaced the windows with double glazing. So did previous tenants. What I didn't do was hang washing out inside, or use the hob without the extractor on. This was the issue with the tenant. Mould can absolutely be caused because people are filthy and lazy.

This is a very difficult problem to solve.
Rents are high & leave tenants with very little disposable income. No wonder they feel belligerent about having to spend their time & effort maintaining the property when they are paying through the nose just to have a basic roof over their head.

But it’s totally normal behaviour to dry washing inside, and it’s not normal for that to cause mould.

if you rent somewhere out you’ve got to take the risk with the reward. You can’t put expectations on the way people live. That’s really unprofessional

Sure - it's fine to do so - as long as you ventilate the house - you can't put stuff on the radiators, keep all the doors and windows shut, and expect the house to just absorb all the moisture.

Are there trickle vents in the windows?

They’re not expecting anything. They don’t need to expect anything. It is, unfortunately , your problem. If you rent a place out you need to realise you can’t demand people open windows or turn extractor fans on.

Then they can expect to get mould that they'll have to clean up!

If I don't clean the fluff out of my tumble dryer, then it will eventually break. If I don't clean the filter of my dishwasher, then it will stop washing the dishes properly. If you fill house with damp, it will be damp.

You sound like the tenant who expected me to come round and change light bulbs for her! As if that was part of a landlord's duties

And this is where Awaab's law will be interesting to watch.

With inspections needed within 10 working days and emergency repairs within 24 hours.

Combined washer-dryers are notoriously poor at drying clothes, so I don't think it is sufficient.

I personally would offer a good dehumidifier with laundry mode (Ecoair or Meaco are good brands), and a product/ cleaner/ handyperson to clean the existing mould, with or without painting the affected area with specialist mould paint.

I don't think a survey is warranted yet, but of course haven't seen the property.

My landlord provided a very good dehumidifier. It was probreeze and about £200. He had someone come clean and paint the offending wall with anti mould paint. The wall was north facing. The window was single glazed. It had no insulation and water dripped of the ceiling at night. Instead of trying to recoup money he provided a solution.

When I moved out my landlord cried. We paid our rent on time. Never gave him a days problem . The property was it was cleaner when we left thab when we arrived. I repainted all the walls and cleaned all the appliances. He gave us back our full deposit and card with a gift voucher in it wishing us good luck in out new home. If you've got good tenants work with them.

My dad rented his flat and got tenants that didn't pay rent for a year abd he had to evict them.

Well presumably if they can simply wash the mould off they either do so or don’t, and you charge for cleaning at the end.

I’m not a tenant of any sort. I’m a housing professional.

24 hours Only relates to make good repairs and there is no time limit on the solution to damp and mould problems - specifically because, it can be really hard to fix (potentially stripping the house back to brick)

if it’s complex the landlord will has to rehouse while they do the works

It's not totally normal behaviour to dry clothes inside. Totally normal behaviour is to tumble dry clothes because common sense says that water from the clothes will settle on the walls and cause damp and mould. If you must dry clothes inside then the drying should be done in a closed room with the window open. I've been in many homes when I was visiting clients to find every radiator covered in damp clothes and not a window open. The tenant would be complaining of mould. Old, draughty houses don't get mould.
Edited to say, I was a housing professional.

Old draughty houses are the worst for mould 😂

it is perfectly normal to dry clothes indoors. Haven’t you been to clients who have neither outdoor space or space for a tumble drier? Very common in flats.

as above, I am able to dry clothes in doors constantly with no ill effect. I have a large, new house. It’s perfectly normal to do so

As a former landlord, I’d probably take the hit, give them a dehumidifier and tell them id it happens again, they willL ba w to pay.

I have lived in all kinds of properties including council flats on run down estates. I have never experienced damp or mould in any of my homes. One council maisonette had no windows in the bathroom and even there there was nod amp or mould. I keep my home well hearted and open a window when I shower or cook.

I live in a large Victorian house. I have chimneys that are open and can be used in every room. I have never had mould. I've also lived in houses built in the 1800s, the oldest house I lived in was built in the early 1700s. None had mould, they all had chimneys, we opened windows to change the air. The worst ones I visited were 1970s houses, no chimney, windows never opened.

Lots of houses (most in fact) don’t get damp or mould. Dependant on all sorts of factors. It’s not enviable by any means. As I say my 20 year old house doesn’t get any. Modern ventilation is excellent.

ROFL exactly - large, new house.

I also have a large house and in lockdown I had a hottub in the kitchen. I had a large volume of air to share the humidity around

When I lived in a cramped little flat, I would find damp in the bedrooms if I hadn't been keeping the extractor on when showering and cooking. Small spaces can't handle drying humidity without ventilation.

i had the same - owned and lived in a basement flat for about two years before renting it out while I moved for work. Within about 6 - 8 months the tenants started having problems with mould. I put one of these in the main bedroom and bathroom - https://www.i-sells.co.uk/product/kair-heat-recovery-extractor-fan-12vac-selv-humidistat/
the humidistat runs when there’s moisture in the air and you can set them up so they can’t be switched off. The good thing is that as they are heat exchanging they also don’t just suck the heat out. Not as effective as a full positive pressure vent system, but much less costly, esp in a flat where you may not have loft space. Sorted the problem out. I’d suggest at least putting one in the bathroom. The filters do need cleaning every six months or so though.

Tenants remove batteries from smoke alarms as they dont like the noise when they burn toast.
Tenants were given a dehumidifer for a flat and didnt use it, even when drying laundry on racks inside. (And despite havjng a condensing dryer to use). Same tenant complained about a draft, which is going untreated as at least some fresh air is getting in.

Maybe they want to burn to death in a mouldy flat? It beggars belief.