Tenant liability - mold from water damage : ezLandlordForms

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Tenant liability - mold from water damage

Alea G

started a topic 2 months ago

Hi there. I have a long term tenant (3 years) who recently informed me of a water leak under the kitchen sink, which appears to have gone on long enough to cause significant water damage and mold growth. We are in a dry part of Texas, so unsure how long the leak had to exist for mold to start growing. The tenant told me as soon as they noticed the damage, but my question is about their liability. Is there any reasonable expectation that they should have noticed the leak before the mold took hold? It was a significant repair cost to remediate and completely tear out the water damaged sections of cabinet, let alone the rebuild costs. Unsure if I am within my landlord rights to keep any or all of their security deposit for this damage. Does not catching the leak before mold grew indicate negligence?