Mold problems can be aggravated by slow-moving condo associations Moldy problem

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Mold problems can be aggravated by slow-moving condo associations

Moldy problem

Sun-Sentinel.com - Fort Lauderdale,FL*

Joe Kollin | CONDOS/HOMEOWNER ASSOCIATIONS

August 22, 2007

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-

flbcondocol0822nbaug22,0,882218.column?page=1

It isn't home sweet home if being there makes you sick.

Mold is recognized as a health danger, yet many readers complain

their condo and homeowner associations are slow to act when they

report mold or problems that could lead to mold.

Those problems could come from a leak in a neighbor's air

conditioner, water seeping from pipes behind the walls or a clogged

toilet that overflows from the unit upstairs. With our heat and

humidity, mold begins forming in 72 hours.

For 30 years, Ron Mc, 67, has owned a townhouse in Tamarac's

Woodglen community. Four years ago, he said, a contractor covered a

hole in the roof with plastic. It blew off during a storm

and " inundated " his unit with water.

It took eight months for his association to respond to the water

damage and when he discovered mold, it took three months to have it

checked. By then, he had developed symptoms of asthma.

" I'm unable to breathe, " he said.

Certified Mold Treatment of Fort Pierce, which inspected the

townhouse for Mc, said living in the unit is " detrimental to

Mr. Mc's health, since he is constantly inhaling airborne mold

spores. "

Mc said he can't afford to move elsewhere and two years ago

filed suit to force the association to fix the problem. The case is

pending and he contends the repairs have not been made. The

association president didn't respond to two phone calls for comment.

Steve Serabian, 49, has also filed suit against his association for

mold.

Serabian has owned a first-floor apartment in the four-story Royal

Park Condo in Oakland Park for 25 years. Seven years ago, water

started leaking in through the drywall. He complained and his

association began patching the outside walls. He said he never

noticed the mold inside the walls.

In 2003, he said, he began having trouble breathing. It got so bad

he had to sleep in his car or at a friend's. By 2005, his weight had

dropped to 170 pounds from 235 and his doctors ordered him to move.

Since then, he has been paying rent on a temporary home while also

paying the condo's maintenance, assessments, taxes and mortgage.

He has filed suit for damages, with trial set for this fall.

" His physician testified that his asthma was a result of prolonged

exposure to mold, " said his attorney, J. McKee. Association

President Bob O'Kon said its experts give the cause as Serabian's

heavy smoking.

Blane Carneal, a Fort Lauderdale lawyer who represents unit owners,

said legal and health problems could be avoided if associations

respond when owners complain.

" They must recognize it as a crisis, not a nuisance, " he said.

Associations are beginning to respond to the problem.

Because insurance companies do not provide mold coverage, O'Kon said

his association is considering setting up a contingency fund to

cover losses when it is responsible. But it often isn't clear who is

responsible for mold damage.

O'Kon said his association's insurer recently settled a suit for

water damage brought by an owner who was away for a couple of months

and returned home to blackened, moldy walls. The upstairs neighbor

had a clogged toilet, which leaked downstairs. The insurer is trying

to get reimbursed by the upstairs owner, he said.

O'Connor, president of the Margate Village Condominium

Association, said his association is facing a similar situation and

he has a simple guideline for who pays.

" If you stand in the middle of a room and you can see the problem,

then it's your problem, " he said. " If it's behind the walls, it's

the association's. "

Q & A

Q. Condo residents complain the cost of using washing machines in

their laundry rooms keeps going up and boards are helpless to stop

it. They ask: Don't the contracts they sign with vendors include how

much they can charge?

A. Donna Burger, a partner in the Katzman & Korr law firm in Fort

Lauderdale, said the problem is " pernicious automatic renewal

clauses " found in service contracts, whether for washers and dryers

or elevators.

" Boards sign on the dotted line and don't realize they are tying

their community in for dozens of years, " she said. " Imagine a

service contract you can't ever get out of and there are no

provisions for termination based on default. "

Automatic renewal clauses tend to be hidden inside pages of

contracts and written in indecipherable language so " board members

can easily overlook them. It is for this reason that it makes sense

to have contracts reviewed by association counsel prior to signing, "

she said.

Staff Writer Joe Kollin discusses condo and homeowner association

issues every other Wednesday. E-mail jkollin@... or

call 954-385-7913 in Broward or 561-243-6503 in Palm Beach County.

See past articles at www.sun-sentinel.com/

condos. Kollin has covered community association issues in the Sun-

Sentinel since 1986.