Mold found during purchase inspection and Seller won't negotiate

[Lincoln Coverdale]

We have a 3 unit under contract in the Cleveland Ohio area and found mold in the basement (unoccupied common space) and the 3rd floor (occupied space).  We brought in our mold remediation contractor and had an assessment performed and a remediation estimate written up.  The cost was just over $1500.  We sent over the test results, assessment and remediation estimate and asked the seller to split the cost with us.  The seller stated they would not, indicating they were not putting anymore money into the deal.  

My questions are:

  1. Does the landlord have an obligation to disclose to the existing tenants?  I know in Ohio you do not have to disclose Mold to potential tenants when they apply, but the law is unclear on existing tenants.

  2.  If we choose to proceed with the purchase what kind of protection or hold harmless do we need to put in place to make sure we are not liable for any tenant recourse.

  3.  It seems to me as a landlord you can not ignore material information about the condition of your property, particularly an item like mold.  Further, I would think they would need to address the mold regardless of the sale, so why not work with us and split the cost?  I even asked if they had a less expensive contractor to try to keep things moving.

Thanks in advance.

[Russell Brazil]

There are no standards for mold like there are for radon. All air has mold in it including the air you are breathing now.

Most mold is harmless to most people. Most people simply over react to it.