Apartment Issues

carrieflem

Hi Guys,

Just wondering if anyone could give me some advice, I moved into an apartment in February 2011 and signed a 1 year lease. There was a small bit of mould in each bedroom when we moved in that I didn’t notice at first. It has now subsequently gotten worse and spread all over the ceiling and in the wardrobes, as I have a serious illness that I got in April 2011, The mould in the bedrooms has caused me sinuses infections, I contacted the landlord about 3 weeks ago to inform her of this, a few days later she came to the apartment with a man to view the property and check the causes of mould. The man in question subsequently wipped some of the mould of the wall which from researching online has spread the mould pores into the air even more which is not very healthy and safe!! She has informed me today that there are coming work to paint the wall only where the mould is with special paint and that once this work has been down then we have to respect the apartment and look after it to ensure that this doesn’t happen again. Their results for each room were as follows:

Mould in bedroom 1 is caused by the ensuite shower , that the shower window is not being opened when we shower and the bedroom window is not being opened. My response to this is I cannot not open the ensuite window anymore when I’m showering as it is a ground floor apartment and there is a derelict building behind it where kids play, one day a kid pulled the window back and shouted in hello, while I was in the shower!!! The bedroom window has always been left open when I shower and for most of the day.

Mould in bedroom 2 is caused by drying clothes in the room simple as and that the window is not opened.

The only thing we dry in the room is towels etc as I bring my drying to my parent’s house unless I’ve gotten caught in a rain shower then Ide dry clothes there as well, there is nowhere else in the apartment adequate to dry the towels and clothes as our sitting room and kitchen are in the same room. Again with the window point, the window is opening for most of the day and again in the evening time. As we have no yard or garden and no dryer, where else are we going to dry our towels and wet clothes. I ve been reading on line and seen that since the 01st Jan 09 that drying facilities should be provided by landlord if no yard of garden is available.

My landlord has told me to ensure windows are open and that no clothes are dried in the house? how is this possible in the winter time when its freezing outside and if we have the windows open most of the day the house will be freezing and also the heaters for the apartment warm up the house in ten minutes but once heating is turned off the house goes freezing instantly so not looking forward to that once winter comes around!!the pipes for each radiator have also started to form large holes around the pipes which the previous tenant covered with seloptape.

My two questions in short are... should a tumble dryer be provided and am I entitled to ask for a Ber cert from the landlord to see if heaters and gas heating are losing heat?

Ideally I would like to move out as I’m dreading the winter there, and as we can’t meet her conditions of not drying clothes or opening windows are we entitled to get out of contract and get refund deposit. (Please note I am not deliberately trying to get out of contract as I have seen previously on boards people looking for a fast escape route to get out of rental agreements).

Thank you

Carrie x

Treehouse72

My understanding (and I am open to correction on this) is that the lack of a BER cert can render a lease void. Look into this with Threshold.

It is also the case that you are not be expected to fulfil a lease if the condition of the property is causing you health problems. Such a situation would be contrary to the terms of the lease itself, which says you have a right to the "quiet enjoyment" of your property, and that the property must be fit for habitation. If those conditions aren't met, it is prima facie cause for the lease to be voided. I suspect this is still the case even if a remedy is suggested but is so unreasonable - like expecting you to open a window that people can see through when you're in the shower - as to make it no remedy at all.

My advice: check your rights on breaking your lease with Threshold on the BER and habitability points I mention above, and then put it to the landlord that unless long-term solutions - not quick fixes - are put in place then you are not liable to complete your lease.

Ray Palmer

If no area to dry clothes is provided a dryer must be.

The reasons for the mold are accurate. Drying towels in a room will cause mould as they contain a lot of moisture. Windows do not need to be left open all day.

The BER cert won't tell you the details you want but you are meant to get one when renting a place. There is some debate whether failure to provide BER is grounds to terminate a lease. It hasn't been tested in court yet.

ztoical

This issue of the BER cert or lack of being grounds to end a lease has come up a few times on here and other forums and I'm inclined to believe this post. You can try and bluff it with the LL but I wouldn't go putting all your eggs in one basket.

Your better off having someone from your local authority come and look at the flat. It is their job to make sure properties meet the standards laid down in law. You shouldn't need to leave windows open for hours, are there no air vents in these rooms? As already pointed out if there isn't an option for drying outside the LL must provide a tumbler dryer.