On Sunday, October 19, I was contacted by several people on behalf of the property residing at 16139 Seminole Blvd. I have been asked to set the story straight after false allegations and threats have been made by the tenant.
Many Facebook viewers have been sympathetic to Carrie Young’s urgent cry for help. Since August 2014, Carrie has been complaining of being ill.
She claims her illness has led from hospital visits, medications, to vacating the house. After being almost 2 months late on the rent and the landlord threatening to evict Carrie, Carrie discovers the house to be infected by mold in the walls and ceiling.
On Social media she posts that her home is covered with mold. She claims that her landlord refuses to do anything about it. She raised $1500+ from the public to vacate the property, but later decides to reside at the property in an RV that was donated to Ohana Rescue. She made a public statement that she has hired a mold specialist to test the home and was told that all of her belongings were ruined and the home should be condemned. She also states that this matter is being dealt with in the courts. However, it was her landlord who took Carrie to court for an eviction for nonpayment of her rent for two months.
Carrie filed a motion to countersue and raised $2200 from a social network after pleading that Ohana Rescue would lose their home if she doesn’t come up with the funds by Monday. She posted pictures of ceiling board that appeared to be black, claiming the walls and ceilings are covered with mold. This mold, she claims is responsible for her severe illness.
In the meantime, The landlord has received threatening emails and phone calls, as well as harassment through cyber bullying. Carrie claims she is alone in this mess with no one willing to take responsibility.
However, this could not be any further from the truth. The landlord’s homeowners insurance covers mold. She made an appointment with a mold specialist to inspect the home. She notified Carrie of this appointment and appeared at the property, only to find that the gates were padlocked and no one was home. The neighbors confirmed that Carrie and Allen left the home at 8:45 in the morning before the scheduled 10:00 appointment. They are still trying to access the property, but are unable to do so due to padlocks and inability to contact Carrie.
Before Carrie Young moved in, the home passed an annual 4-point inspection.
Carrie Young and Allan Wilson met with the realtor to see the home. They moved in with hopes to one day purchase the property.
Carrie mentioned several problems with the home and property and the landlord sent out companies to do all repairs.
After Carrie moved in and got settled, she fell behind on her rent after the second month. After the second month the landlord contacts her about having to evict her for nonpayment of the rent. Two weeks later before the third month’s rent is due, Carrie calls the landlord complaining of a leak, but says nothing about mold. On August 31, 2014, before rent is due, Carrie claims the home is infested with mold. The landlord tries to work out this problem with her, including sending a mold specialist out to inspect the property for her insurance company, but she is unable to access the property. Depending on the results of the testing, she has offered to replace the trailer and/or give Carrie her deposit back, so that she can move. If the landlord cannot access the property to test the home for mold, she cannot fix or replace home without documentation for her insurance company.
The landlord attempts to contact Carrie through email and sends her this letter. It is also noted in the letter that Carrie Young did not have her permission to uncover the pool. She also makes note that she did NOT know that Carrie was moving in with the intentions of running Ohana Rescue from her property. She was told that it would be Carrie and her husband only, along with 3 horses and 2 donkeys. She states that she did not have her permission to run a business from her property and her insurance does not cover the property as a public facility with people interacting and riding horses.
After the landlord filed an eviction on Carrie Young, Carrie filed a countersuit against the plaintiff to cover personal damages.
Therefore, the landlord sends several letters to the judge in defense to their case.
Carrie Young submits to the courts an invoice for a mold inspection done on the home. Results of the test should be available after October 2nd, but none have been submitted.
In conclusion, there are many questions that one may ask. If the home is infected with mold and should be condemned, why can’t the owner access the property to do the necessary tests for her insurance company? Why would the tenant spend $1200 to test the home, when landlord must order these same tests for the insurance company, so that the insurance will cover the repairs, etc? If the mold specialist has deemed the house condemnable, why hasn’t the county been notified to condemn the home?
If Carrie Young was given the opportunity to receive her deposit back, as well as raise money from the public to move, why didn’t Carrie move and fight the case in court while living in a safer environment? If the home is infested with mold, why didn’t Carrie take the landlord to court instead of filing a countersuit after the landlord took her to court to evict her for nonpayment of rent? If Carrie refused to pay rent after discovering the mold, why was she already 1-1/2 months behind on the rent before the mold was discovered? Why did Carrie have to raise money for her rent to pay the courts, if the issue at hand was “mold??
It seems that the landlord had no recollection of Carrie owning and operating a nonprofit 501c3 horse rescue before moving in. Why would a tenant not mention this important factor such as running a business, moving large animals on and off property, and inviting the public to the property for riding events, etc.? Does Carrie have insurance to cover damages and injuries that may be caused by running an equine business from her home? Did her fibromyalgia cause mental confusion that she again “forgot” to tell the landlord about the horse rescue that she runs? Did she also forget to mention that her son would be staying with them as well? Carrie told the landlord that she had 3 horses and 2 donkeys that would be residing on the property, but when Carrie moved to the property, she moved in with 8 horses and 2 donkeys. Could it be possible that her memory has been clouded from her illness and she didn’t know how to answer the questions for the property rental regarding her business, how many animals she takes care of, and how many people live with her?
Carrie posted on her Facebook page that someone “donated” an RV for Carrie to reside in. Carrie is now suing the landlord for $6,000 for the RV. Was this a donation or a loan? Is the landlord liable to pay for an RV that was “donated” to Carrie after she offered to give Carrie her money back?
Carrie is asking for $3,000 to be reimbursed to her at $15 an hour x 200 hours for the improvements made to the home, pool, and property. Carrie is asking to be reimbursed for the pool expenses, but yet she did not have the landlord’s permission to uncover the pool. Carrie also signed an agreement that she was leasing/buying as is, but now feels entitled to receive monetary gain for work she has done for her own benefit that was not contracted out by the landlord. Carrie is also on disability and should NOT be working to receive funds for a paid job without first contacting disability.
Carrie claims that she has been in and out of the hospital with medical illness due to mold in the home. She is asking to be reimbursed for all medical expenses. If Carrie is receiving disability and has for several years, it’s probably safe to say that Medicaid is covering her medical expenses. Is she asking the landlord to cover her medical expenses, so that she can pay back Medicaid for her medical bills? If the landlord is responsible for her medical expenses, shouldn’t the medical reports document and reflect her illness to be caused by mold? If her personal property has been destroyed by mold, she therefore should expect this property to be replaced? Has she proved that her personal belongings, besides her “boots” have been ruined by mold?
We will follow the court proceedings in hopes that some of these questions may be answered. Is Carrie Young entitled for time, money, and damages caused by mold or is the landlord entitled to ask Carrie to move, so that she can have access to the property, so she may inspect and repair all damages?
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