Buying house for rental, inspection issues - mold

[Dale K.]

Hello BP'ers

We're moving towards a first house for rental, under contract, and had an inspection done today.  I would have thought I'd find most issues, but no, it was worth having a good inspector look it over.   Overall the house is close to being turnkey ready to rent as expected, with a few more relatively minor repairs to do than I had thought.   

The inspection showed one more significant issue:     some areas of black fuzzy spotty mold in crawlspace on floor joists, and quite a few areas of white dusty mold.  Nothing upstairs in living spaces, beyond mildew on some not often cleaned vinyl window frames.  There are some sources of moisture to the crawlspace that were known and a couple more I didn't realize at first, but all can be taken care of I estimate:    crawlspace vents maybe always left closed,  condensate drains for furnace and tankless water heater not run to proper drains, just running onto crawl dirt, no gutters on house and grading could be improved on one end of house.   Having the mold remediated should be possible, cleaning and spraying in the crawlspace.

My question;   Anyone have experience with disclosures to tenants of building history for rentals?  Should not be required after issues are resolved?  Unless specifically asked?

Thanks for your insights !

[Michele Fischer]

You do not need to disclose this to applicants.  If they specifically ask about mold or issues with the house you should let them know that when you bought it there was mold under the house but you remediated it (or required the current owner to before purchasing, if that is an option).

This isn't likely something that the neighbors would be aware of, but FYI that our neighbors sing like canaries of anything unsavory that ever happened at our houses.  Once at rental agreement signing.  We just roll with the punches, explain that we are committed to better management than in the past, and give them the option to leave/opt out.