I had the misfortune of mold growing on the floor (ceramic tiles) under a large wooden closet in the bedroom of an apartment (I rent out an entire 2 room apt). I noticed an odd smell recently inside the closet, but assumed that previous guests had stored something funky in there, and with a bit of airing out, the odor would leave. Big mistake, but I live in a mostly dry climate, and do not have a lot of experience with mold or what smells to be aware of.
Shortly after, another group arrived. This group (I later discovered) had experience with mold in their own home and noticed the smell immediately. However, they did not bring it to my attention until the 4th day. I responded immediately, had the closet checked, and found mold on the floor underneath. I cleaned everything, but because they were worried about the presence of spores remaining in the air, they asked Airbnb to find them another place to stay. I was very apologetic and understanding of their concerns, and they got a full refund for the remaining 10 nights, but I did not offer to refund the nights stayed (nor did they ask for a refund for those 4 nights). The guest did post a review, which I was obviously dreading (my first bad review after 8 years hosting and superhost). Luckily it did not mention the mold, but was very negative. In a private message she sent with the review she explained that she was very upset I had not refunded them for the nights they stayed. Should I have given them a refund/partial refund for those nights?
In my view yes, your place wasnât fit to be rented
I would have refended but itâs very annoying they waited four days.
Absolutely I would have refunded. Iâm frankly surprised that you let the guests stay when you knew very well that there was an âodd smellâ. Odd smells tend to be indicative of something weird going on. As @Debthecat says, the place wasnât in a fit condition to be rented, you knew it and yet you still let guests stay there. What caused the mould? Have you fixed it?
However, the guest was also in the wrong. She should have mentioned the smell to you at once, as soon as she noticed it. And in response to her comment about being upset about not getting a full refund, I would message her and say that had she pointed out the issue at once, then you would have happily refunded the entire stay.
She canât have her cake and eat it. There arenât many people who would stay somewhere with a mould smell (I certainly wouldnât) and I do wonder what her motivation was for not reporting it at once. If it happened to me, which Iâm 99.999% sure it wouldnât, Iâd tell her that âthe rules stateâ that refunds are only given for unused nights. She doesnât know whether you mean your own rules, your HOA rules, Airbnb rules, local authority rulesâŚ
I didnât know the room wasnât in fit condition. The smell was not that strong (it wasnât a mold smell, by the way, just an odd smell), and it seemed to come out of only one section of the closet. I keep spare pillows/sheets in that closet, and they smelled fine. I mistook it for something previous guests might have stored in there. There can be such a variety of odors after guests leave a place, itâs not easy to tell. If I knew what was under the closet I would have taken care of it! On the bright side, I have been doing my research on mold (apart from cleaning what I found, airing out, running dehumidifier, and getting an air purifier that removes mold spores), and had this not happened now, I might have not discovered the cause until later. There isnât a leak, but now I know to be more vigilant about mold and see what I else I can do to prevent it from happening again.
Also to be fair, I think the guests did not bring it up with me immediately because it wasnât an obvious mold smell. They probably thought, like I did, that it was just a strange smell that could be aired out. I am going to check if my private rental insurance will cover a refund.
I would have done s full refund for my own peace of mind.
Youâre not a mind reader. If she wanted a refund for those days, she should have spoken up. Iâm surprised that Airbnb did not refund it to her. What is done is done, nothing you can do about it. Maybe you can respond to her review saying sorry for the misunderstanding.
I donât follow these responses. Maybe that is because I rented a basement apt. once with mold and even after I found out I slept there. This thing of a closet having mold for 4 nightsâŚand wanting 100% refunds? Huh? Why? Get over it. I think Airbnb likely included their 10% maybe extraâŚwho knows?
I guess I am clueless about mold in a closet. No, I would not have offered a refund for every night of their stay. I meanâŚwhat more did they want? If you needed to refund for their âPITA moveâ I guess that could have been discussed. This is craziness over the top to me.
And I mean I lived in that basement apt. for a long period of time with mold. Stupid me and stupid landlord. But my point isâŚwhat compensation does someone really expect with a mold in underneath a closet tile?? This is crazy.
I just hope my new guests today are okay with how the departing guests snapped off the air conditioner lever. The departing guests said the microwave wasnât working, so hopefully that is fixed. Having mold in a closetâŚI guess I am cluelessâŚ
Damage is done. Review was posted. Mold was cleaned. Keep the money and move on. They shouldâve said something asap and did not. You shouldâve investigated more but didnât. Lessons learned all around.
Iâm in the countryside, surrounded by fields, yâknow, nature. They seemed to be scared of everything. Bugs, plants, grasses.
Any time thereâs a âstrangeâ smell in my 81 yr old house, it calls for investigation, and usually some kind of deep cleaning.
I have a 81 year old cabin, and almost always after being closed up there is a smell. I am going to have to tackle cleaning out the attic one day I suspect it is coming from there, it is the only space I have not been in. Some fool rolled out carpet up there on top of the insulation to insulate more I guess, I have no idea how they got it up there but I may have to remove an exterior wall to get it out. I think there may be dead rodents, ewe.
RR
Yes there are but after a few years you can easily tell which smells are âguest smellsâ and which are needing some further investigation. As @NordlingHouse says, a strange smell is a sign that thereâs something wrong that needs attention. Iâm wondering how long it had been growing there? Mould isnât something that springs up overnight. Did you ever find out the cause and fix it?
I would never refund for nights guests actually stayed
Well, there isnât a leak, and Iâm in Greece, so itâs usually just dry and hot in the summer. My best guess is that general humidity and lack of ventilation in the winter when the apartments are shut down (itâs a seasonal rental). I will need to keep some windows open in the winter, dehumidify more, push the closet away from the wall (off season), and just keep checking if it reappears. But any suggestions from people who have more experience with mold are welcome.
All good ideas.
Iâm in South Florida where itâs hot and humid for a lot of the year and mould can be a problem, for example in bathrooms if theyâre not well ventilated.
Is it possible for you to elevate the closet on legs? At least during the winter season? Maybe if air can circulate well underneath, that could help a lot. During the off season you could simply put it up on anything - like a brick on every corner - but a permanent answer might be to have a handyman fit legs for all year round.
You can buy very short legs to screw into the bottom for relatively cheap amounts at most hardware stores! No handyman needed
Just give them a discount, next time before receiving a guest make sure the room is clean and organize.