Mother’s warning to tenants after horrific discovery at her ‘perfect’ Werrington Down rental home left her daughter sick and forced her to move out
An Australian mother is warning tenants after a horrific discovery at her ‘perfect’ rental home forced her to move out.
Kimberley McMahon was relieved to find a rental property in Werrington Downs, in Sydney’s west, but just weeks after moving, her young family fell ill with bad back fungus.
Ms McMahon said a “terrible smell” started seeping through the walls last month, but she initially didn’t know where it was coming from.
After discovering a dangerous amount of thick black mold in an air conditioner that wasn’t working and coming through the paint on the walls, she alerted the property manager, who sent a handyman.
Kimberley McMahon was relieved to find a rental property in Werrington Downs, in Sydney’s west, but just weeks after moving, her young family fell ill with back fungus
After discovering a dangerous amount of thick black mold in an air conditioner that wasn’t working and coming through the paint on the walls, she notified the property manager
“We could see it coming through the paint and I emailed the property manager directly and I said you can’t just paint over mold and expect it not to grow,” she said. 7NEWS.
Mrs McMahon developed a sore throat and her daughter, who has a weakened immune system, developed a chesty cough, runny nose and sore throat.
The family believes this is a direct result of the mold in the house.
After a battle with their landlord, the family managed to get their deposit back and have the lease terminated.
Mrs McMahon was shocked to hear that a new family had moved into the property. She said she almost wanted to contact the new tenants to warn them.
She said the whole ordeal made her angry because the property manager made her feel “stupid.”
Ms McMahon said the landlord made her feel like she didn’t know what she was talking about, but was happy to let her leave once she had complained enough.
“Normally we are very careful and inspect the houses for mold, but this time we didn’t know when we had inspected, and we were just really desperate to get a house with this rental crisis,” she said.
An Australian mother is warning tenants after a horrific discovery at her ‘perfect’ rental home forced her to move out
The real estate company that rented the property said the tenant was “in quite a bit of trouble and wanted to leave, which they did after a three-week rental period.”
The mold problem was reported on February 19 in the back of a low cupboard in the kitchen.
“This (mold) has now been repaired and we have engaged professionals to investigate, inspect and remedy any remaining mold spores in the property,” the spokesperson said.
According to NSW Fair Trading, managing mold risk is ‘a shared responsibility’ between tenants and property providers in NSW.
Tenants are urged to report any mold or maintenance issues to their landlord or property manager as soon as possible.
More information can be found on the Fairtrade website.