Can I charge tenant for cost of mold remediation

[Rongsu Qi]

Hi all, 

I'm a new landlord and would appreciate some advice and suggestions. 

I closed a duplex in Florida back in June. At the time of inspection, no mold was found. Now the second month in, one unit reported mold on bathroom wall and very small puddle of water on the floor outside the bathroom.  I've called a mold cleanup company to check it out, and it took the tenant 2 days to respond to the call from the cleanup company and finally set the appointment for the day after (he said he works 7am to sundown). 

My question is, can I charge the tenant for the cost of mold remediation, and how should I go about it? Since it's a result of tenant's negligence in maintenance, and failure to report leaks in time. Unfortunately, the company managing the property before I bought it didn't have tenant sign a mold addendum.  

Thank you so much!

[Thomas S.]

Tenants can never be relied upon to report maintenance issues, thus the need for quarterly inspections, and in my opinion therefor can not be held responsible. You can try but success is unlikely.

In only two months the clean up should only require a little bleach not a clean up company. If it is more serious the problem has existed for a lot longer than 2 months. The tenant was likely not aware of the problem and when they were that is when they reported it.

Clean it up and move on.