we leased the home we are in now 3 months ago, and have discovered black mold growing in 2 of our closets. We have repeatedly asked our land lord to do something about it but he refuses. we even went so far as to have the city building inspector perform an inspection on the home, and he sent his results to the landlord demanding that the problems be fixed, it's been over a month now since we first discovered the problem, and no work has been done on it, my question is: how can we get out of this house and get our security deposit back leagally? and if that is not possible, how can we MAKE the landlord get the work done? thanks for your advice. --75.64.xxx.xxx

Clean the offending area with bleach and do not store damp items or it will re-occur and damage your clothing - pick up the damp towels in the bathroom and turn on the fan or open the window to improve ventilation. Mold is an airborne spore, mildew is the result of dampness which when neglected can feed mold growth, all the hype in early 2000's about black mold and baby deaths has been documented by Johns Hopkins University as a wide spread myth. Of course if you move out and do not clean then the landlord will do this at your expense after taking photos to bring to court justifying the expenses deducted for damages and cleaning. --76.241.xxx.xx

You think you're cute by calling the city inspector on your landlord. I smell an eviction which will go on your permanent record. --66.228.xxx.xx

Troll --74.75.xxx.xxx

Brad, no eviction, thank you, we pay our rent on time....only a wanna-be bully for a landlord that refuses to take care of his property. The mold conditions arose from a leaking air conditioner in the attic, clearly not our responsability to repair. I don't think i clearly stated how rampant the mold is...entire celing of two closets, and large patches in the attic. i would never call a city inspector until i had exhausted all other amicable options. --75.64.xxx.xxx

In the meantime, if you are concerned with this, clean with diluted bleach. Be careful, bleach is a corrosive acid, a hazardous chemical, and will burn you. --66.228.xxx.xx

well, thanks for no real help everyone. the actual questions i asked were not answered. i am not in the cleaning mold business, especially not on this scale. this is clearly a site for landlords, not tenants. enjoy the long weekend everyone. and thanks for the tips on mold cleanup, when i settle down and buy my own home, i'm sure they will come in handy. --75.64.xxx.xxx

You are welcome for all the advice, troll. I wish you well with your home purchase. By breaking your lease with this ridiculous complaint, the way should be open for you to purchase now. --74.75.xxx.xxx

In fairness to your questions,as a practical matter, you can not MAKE your landlord clean up the mold. You could withhold paying this month's rent, save the cash for your new home purchase, eat up your security deposit, move out of your current place and into your new home in early Sept. Take lots of pictures of the mold, don't forget to develop a headache, blurry vision, and memory loss. Better than 50:50 your current landlord will not chase you out the door. --74.75.xxx.xxx

Make sure you return the rental in clean and servicable condition and ask for a walk through with the LL for damages. --74.184.xxx.xx

if u dont keep wet things around u will not usually get mold.do u have and use a shower fan?ive lived at my current address for 9 years with a shower fan to dry things out and no mold.if he refuses to do serious repairs i would leave.dont deal with a landlord who wont do serious repairs.we just send the inside painter in for these things.he has lots of experience on this.i would have been on this the same day u mentioned it. --208.58.x.xx

It would be best for you to find a tenant's advice forum. Many of the landlords here have experience with tenants who want to get out of a lease creating a "mold" problem, and are highly suspicious of your motives. --71.175.xxx.xx

I do not want someone there who does not want to be there, especially for health reasons. I did return their entire deposit, no questions asked. But they were great tenants, always paid on time, and left the unit in very good condition. --97.126.xx.xxx