Just after some advice, we live in a new-ish build which of course was built in a week or so and using cheap materials means that the ventilation is awful in bathrooms with no windows. We use the fans every time we have a shower but the mould still grew. Add to the fact there's 2 en suites in this little flat. Long story short, the LL has told us we need to move out as work will take around 2 months. Our tenancy is 6 months until January and we're just wondering where we stand in terms of finding a new place. What if we can't find a place within the time they serve the 2 months notice (I hear 2 months written by the LL is the usual way) Thank you.

Hi All I first discovered some mould / damp / fungus on some walls in the house in April 2012. The agent took photos then including behind the sofa where we sit each night. This area was damp to touch and the back of our cushion was also "wet". There has been works done on one bedroom but nothing has been done on an area behind our sofa. It is this area I am worried about. I checked behind the sofa again on the 4th November I saw and area spanning perhaps 1.3 meters across and perhaps 40cm high of a black/blue ash like stuff. As I said above I was told to wipe this which I did but I took pictures first. It seems to be growing again though 22nd November. It mentions in my contract about the place not being habitable and being able to cancel the contract after one month. It also mentions that a fair proportion of the rent should cease to be payable until it is resolved. Since this began in April I am wondering a few things: I am confused about this timing and who makes the call it is not habitable. Do I need to prove it is a fungus that affects health, who would be able to do that? Environmental health? How do you define inhabitable? The room does not resemble a scene from an alien film but I certainly would not put guests in the room. Do I have any right to see the Landlord’s Policy of Insurance to see if fungus / mould is covered? I only noticed now I should have asked for a reduction of rent at the very least. Can I retrospectively ask for that or how does the laws work here? My deposit is protected with the DPS but if I was able to leave the agreement with this, will the deposit be affected or should that be given back also as normal? Here is the section in question from the agreement. Would appreciate any advice, the canny amongst you will probably note I am interested in leaving the property anyway as it has been constant issues really but we have been locked in pretty good. Interested if this could be used to leave, and anyway if it is going to give me breathing problems I would rather not be sat 4 inches away from it each night. Thanks

Hello, I'm really hoping someone will be able to give me some advice, I don't know what to do. I moved into my flat last week (4th Jan). It's in a converted Victorian terrace. When I looked round I thought the flat had a musty smell but the lettings agency told me it was because the flat had been empty for a few months. Despite my best efforts to air the flat, I can't get the smell to go. The carpet lifts up in a couple of corners and I can see that the carpet underlay is pretty black and smells of mould. I can't see any other signs of mould around the flat apart from in the bathroom, which is windowless and has no ventilation (there is some mould inside the cupboards). The bathroom also smells terribly of drains. I've contacted the landlord about both issues but haven't heard back from him at all. What I want to know is, do I have any rights to end my AST early? I hate being in the flat because of the smell. Even if he fixes the bathroom and puts in an extractor fan, the rest of the flat will still smell. Most of what I've read online implies that mould and damp is down to "tenants lifestyles" - but I've only been there a week! Would really appreciate any advice you have. Thanks Kate