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?

So as a tenant I have the right to enjoy my house. I don’t need to adapt the way I live to what the landlord wants me to do, or what protects the building fabric

and clearly our examples demonstrate why many people don’t think they need to open windows and can’t dry clothes indoors. They are used to doing so.

Our 1920s house suffered from condensation badly. We installed a positive intake ventilation system and it completely solved the problem - they're amazing (and not-very-expensive).

I'd also thoroughly recommend this dehumidifier: I got rid of our expensive-to-run tumble dryer and now dry our clothes throughout the colder months using the dehumidifier on the clothes drying setting - it's MUCH cheaper:

Yep, it really does.

@Sashavelour65, exact same situation. Had to rent my flat out as I moved for work and couldn’t sell it. Had lived there ten years, no issue.

4 months of the tenants living there… black mould everywhere. They weren’t heating or ventilating the flat, wet washing hanging around for days.

I had an expert come in to prove that it wasn’t an issue with the flat and shared this with a solicitor. Told them that it har
to be sorted before their next inspection.

My flat was beautiful. Newly decorated. All new appliances. New carpet. They ruined it.

When they left i had to spend thousands sorting it out.

I sold as soon as I could.

i was a good landlord, maintained the property to a high standard, charged a competitive rent. But the tenants didn’t a shit. Didn’t report things when they were broken,
disnt clean…. And before anyone comes for me that they couldn’t afford to heat it, I had financial checks done. Two professionals in good salaried jobs.

Not all landlords are bastards and this is why a lot of them are selling up as their tenants are awful.

Christ. That's a terrible attitude. Of course if you want to live in a damp, mouldy house that's up to you, but fuck me, you're not going to be getting a reference from me if you do it, and it's absolutley your own fault when the required remediations at the end are taken out of your deposit. You have a right to quiet enjoyment, not quiet destruction!

You’re missing the point. Their attitudes don’t matter. They’re customers. You don’t get to control them by putting expectations on the way they should live .

and as above, you won’t be able to deduct from their deposit.

you keep referring to mould you can wash off- this isn’t really a thing, as it comes back (indicating an underlying fabric / damp problem) but if you genuinely think it’s just case of washing what’s the big deal? No different to a tenant who doesn’t get the windows cleaned, or stains the carpets. All cosmetic, dealt with by a clean at the end.

that’s not the kind of mould that has led to Aawabs law.

And that's not the kind of mould we're talking about here - we're talking about user-error a tenant who apparently was never taught that you can't fill a house with water and expect there not to be mould.

Fair wear and tear isn't reclaimable. If a tenant is filing the house with moisture and ruins fresh wallpaper and soft furnishings (especially if a dehumidifier is provided that they still don't use), then potentially it is though - it will depend on the length of the tenancy, and also if it's worth the landlord reclaiming.

I had a tenant paint the kitchen worktops - sure, I suppose that's something they can do when in custody of the house, but I absolutely got money from their deposit for replacing them (reduced proportionally by the age of the work surface) as quiet enjoyment isn't without limits. If (for example) they are attracting vermin then something obviously must be done.

But because there is no way to enforce ways of living, you would not be able to claim for mould you think they have caused.

As above, you could charge a cleaning fee to get it cleaned off- of course it’s likely to come back.

So what are you talking about? - this mythical “wipe it off mould” - which is surely no problem- or the mould that comes from damp, which will have penetrated the building fabric to varying degrees?

the first- yes, charge for a clean. The second, no you can’t charge.