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Updated over 5 years ago,
End a lease early if house is not habitable?
I own a property occupied by a section 8 family. The tenant told me there was a leak at the kitchen sink. Water was leaking through the kitchen floor onto the basement floor. I filed an insurance claim right away. While the guys were in there working she claimed that mold from the water damage made her kids sick and she went to stay in a hotel. Her renters insurance covered her hotel visit. I specifically requested mold testing from the insurance co. so as I was worried about being liable for her kids being sick. The results came in with very harmful levels. The restoration co went back to work remediating those areas and also tested for mold in the rest of the house. Those results came back even worse. The tenant is staying in a hotel, her insurance is almost out, the restoration co wants to remove all of her stuff and remediate the entire house and my insurance limit on mold is only $10K. I already know the tenant will expect me to pay for her housing AND for her belongings to be cleaned. Am I able to terminate this lease because the house is not safe? Am I responsible for her stuff to be scrubbed? How do I get through this without getting sued?