Withholding a tenants deposit due to mold?
I just bought a property that had tenements that were older and lived in the house for about 10 years. It came out during the inspection that there was a sewer line blockage and the tenants confirmed there had been “back ups”.
When viewing the property I could visibly see there is mold underneath the linoleum all over the bathroom floor. Some parts black near the toilet. But it’s on a concrete slab so was told I could just change the floor and treat it and be good.
When the tenants moved out they found a number of spots behind furniture that had quite a bit of mold. After getting it inspected there are 6 areas where the drywall will have to be ripped out and replaced including two walls in the bathroom and I’m looking at $5k+ in remediation.
Can I withhold the tenants deposit for this for negligence if not telling the landlord there was back ups/toilet problems?
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Purchase and Sale Agreement. Called various things around the country, it's the Contract to Buy and Sell where I'm at. This is the master document that determines the price and terms of the agreement as well as timeline, any contingencies, closing, EM, estoppels, appraisal, which appliances and fixtures will convey with the sale and which won't, rent proration, etc. etc. etc.
Unfortunately, nobody can answer your specific question about whether the tenant can be held responsible for damage in this case definitively because the answer could come down to a judges future decision on the matter, after reviewing all the details of the transaction, the PSA/contract, the lease, and hearing both sides. Technically a tenant can be help responsible for not informing a landlord of water intrusion, but in this case you did have your inspection period during which you had the opportunity to uncover any issues, so that would have been the time to conduct your due diligence, and it sounds like they did let you know about the issue at that time. For these reasons, it may be unlikely that you'd be successful in putting this on the tenant. You could keep their security deposit and find out, but sometimes that isn't worth the effort and can even backfire.
Next time move the furniture/ inspect a little more carefully, and get estoppel agreements signed by the tenants that state which appliances, fixtures and furniture are theirs, verify the terms of the lease and any outside "handshake" agreements with the landlord, any issues with the property, etc. Good luck!