I Bought A House And Discovered Mold In Attic A Few Days Later. I’m A Single Mother.who Is Responsible?
Homeowners will not cover the removal of the mold because it is not the result of a leak. I feel as though it was an ongoing problem before I moved in, and I shouldn't have to pay for it. I can't afford to with two small children. Should I hire a lawyer? Even then, I am not sure if I will recoop that money back. I had someone look at the attic and they said it is a big job, $10-20,000, maybe more. I'm in a bad situation. If you know any resources, please let me know. I need to work quickly so my children do not get sick. Thanks for any info.
Posted in Q & A | 
Tags: Attic, Bad Situation, Bought, Days, Discovered, Few Days, House, House Mold, Job, Later., Lawyer, Mold, Money Back, Mother.who, Responsible, Single, Single Mother
Tags: Attic, Bad Situation, Bought, Days, Discovered, Few Days, House, House Mold, Job, Later., Lawyer, Mold, Money Back, Mother.who, Responsible, Single, Single Mother
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If you are in the US the owners had to sign a statement of full disclosure. If the mold is obvious, they violated that document and you have recourse against the sellers. First step is to talk to the title company who handled the closing. They have attorneys who should tell you what to do.
By the way, there is very little scientific evidence that “mold” is a hazard, it is everywhere. Lots of companies are out there trying to make bucks of of people who are afraid of mold since the news media always calls it “toxic mold”. Penecillin and other essential drugs are made from mold. Some people do have respiratory problems, but the problem is more with the moisture excess (high humidity) than the natural mold in it.
If your attic were properly vented, there would not be a mold issue– moisture is apparently coming up through the ceiling, which is normal. In a properly installed roof structure, there is gable or soffit or roof vents, or a combination, to allow this naturally occuring moisture to move out of the attic. While mold is annoying, your real problem may well be structural– if there is enough moisture to develop mold, then you have have rot occuring in the attic joists and rafters. You need to demand a complete inspection of the attic by a qualified inspector since the sellers failed to disclose a serious potential structural defect.
Why on earth did you buy a house without an inspection??? Unless there was a warranty, or you can prove the former owners knew about it and did not tell you, then you’re on your own.
your responsible unless…you can prove that the owners knew about the issue and did not disclose it.
10-20,000 is a pretty big problem not to notice
your inspector should have gone up there.
Did you have a home inspection before you bought the house? If not call your realtor and see if there is a warantee.
They guys who sold the house have to tell you this kind of thing.
I’m guessing that $10k is a little high. Google around. I know there are affordable fugicides and even a bit of air circulation in the attic will change the mold situation.
Those electronic air filters filter molds well enough. Get them used on ebay for $50 or so.
What state are you in? Calif has laws about disclosing any problems. You should have been told before. Contact the people who sold you the place and find out if you had a policy that covered any problems with the structure. State agencies should be able to help. Did you have a home inspection?This is a serious problem. If you can see it and I take it you can a solution of bleach might work. Where did the mold come from if not from water? and if from water what was going on to have water in that area? It just sounds like someone should be covering this.
easy fix . get a pump sprayer its like 15 to 20 $ fill it with ammonia and spray down the entire area . this will kill the fungus. then put out a bucket with half water and half bleach . as it evaporates it will kill any air born fungus . and set a couple bags of BBQ briskets in a box open . it will absorb the moisture . get the cheep stuff it dose not have the flammable chemicals that smell . and since you have such moisture problems i bet it is even worse under the house . have someone go under and toss out salt from a water softener it is pretty cheep and will get rid of spiders snakes slugs tree frogs ect . and it will help keep out the fungus . and if your floors are weak and no doubt they are . regardless you need to start collecting jacks . the sizers jacks for a car . the ones with a flat top is best. wen you have enough and you need allot of them . you can use them to lift up on the floor joist . this will do in spots but later on you will need to have some 4/4 and bricks to make it stronger .
Untamed Rose is correct.
Been there. We couldn’t PROVE that previous owners did not realize there was a foundation problem. Inspector could not see problem without tearing down a wall in the basement that the previous owners’ put up ‘to beautify the place to sell’ and they are not contractors to know what they were looking at while installing this wall. We lost. We were stuck. We had to fix problem that is now in public records because taking it to court and still had to pay the lawyor, too.
Call local lawyor for insight on the situation. Do it quickly so you don’t have to add ‘Why did you wait so long if you knew there is a problem’ to the list.