Mold in Sequim Homes?The Plaintiff purchased his home and moved in. He was a bachelor, but would have friends come over to play cards and his granddaughter would come to visit. Coughing, sneezing, runny noses and itchy eyes triggered questions by the Plaintiff until he decided to hire an expert from the Seattle area to take samples and get lab results. The expert’s testimony at court was that after 14 years of doing this kind of testing in Washington, this home rated in the 97th percentile of the most polluted homes in the State.
Sequim Buyer Discovers Mold
The Sellers had made changes to the heating and circulation system that were not according to design and installation specifications. The crawl space acted as the plenum for the forced air, but the design called for a concrete floor, but the Sellers only used visqueen on the dirt ground. The mold built up throughout the house to very high levels, which would have required very expensive cleaning and replacement to make it inhabitable. The Sellers had not disclosed this to the Buyer and so it was misrepresentation and fraud.
The judge granted judgment in favor of the Defendant Sellers based on his decision that every human being is different, and that there are no medical standards that define what is unacceptable or dangerous. After the judgment, the Seller had a problem: he had to sell the house and disclose the mold problem, but who would want to buy it then?
Mold in Older Homes
If you’re buying an older home, or even a home that is only a few years old, due diligence in hiring the right professionals to put you on notice of health hazards is obviously very important. Wisdom would dictate that you have the right contingency language in your offer that gives you the right to have a professional inspect the house before you buy it. Does your real estate agent have the depth of knowledge and experience to protect you from mold in your Sequim home?
Last Updated on September 19, 2019 by Chuck Marunde
I am amazed that when the house was bought the mold was not caught. When I bought my house they required a mold inspector to come out TWICE! It was not cheap but in the end it was worth it to know that the home was clear of mold and I was not buying a “sick” house.
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I thank you for this article. I had a couple of questions and was searching the Internet for answers, and I found them on your site. Good stuff. Thanks again. By the way, I love your writing style, because you have great content but you also make the subjects enjoyable to read. I’m going to order your book, The New World of Marketing for Real Estate Agents, from Amazon.
Thats too bad for the guy who owns the mold infested house. He should have won that settlement I think. Now he has to take a financial dive on the property because the previous sellers cut a corner.
Very unfair court decision on this issue. I know mold appears in areas with excessive humidity. To remove mold and fungus will be very costly and take a lot of time.
You’re right about mild and mildew being a health hazard. Great article.
Good lists!!!
Interesting article, especially the part about the judge ruling in favor of the Seller. Strange that things like pollution aren’t enforceable in court? Thanks for the good read.