What was painted over
A fresh coat over a mold stain holds for two months to one winter. The hyphae under the paint stay alive, and a moisture meter reads them through the coat.
Before buying or renting
fresh paint hides. a sample does not.
An apartment shown for sale or rent has been cleaned, aired and painted. That is exactly what hides mold. A mold test before buying measures what is in the air and in the walls now, while you can still change the price, demand a repair or walk away.
- 1visit, before signing
- 3outcomes: price, repair, or walking away
- 10-14business days to results and report
Why looking is not enough
what a viewing cannot know.
A viewing lasts twenty minutes, in daylight, after the seller opened the windows. Each of those conditions lowers the chance of seeing or smelling mold.
What is behind the wardrobe
A north wall behind a built-in wardrobe or a bed is the first place to condense in winter and the last thing anyone moves before a viewing.
Who is selling
The seller, the agent and sometimes the appraiser get paid when the deal closes. An independent test is the only party in the room that earns the same whatever the result.
What we measure
the walls, the air, and the history.
Before a purchase the question is not only whether there is mold today, but whether there was, and whether it will come back in your first winter.
Visit and air samples
Moisture mapping of every exterior and wet-room wall, thermal imaging, an air sample in the bedrooms and outdoors.
About this methodERMI test
DNA from the apartment's dust says what grew there in recent months, even if today it is clean, aired and painted.
About this methodMonitoring in the first winter
For a flat with a history: humidity and temperature sensors that show whether a wall is condensing, before there is a stain.
About this methodWhat a home inspection does not check
from a finding to a clause.
A standard pre-purchase inspection covers electrics, plumbing, waterproofing and structure. Mold appears in it, if at all, as a note about a visible stain. This is the route that turns a lab result into money or into a clause in the contract.
Timing: after the viewing, before signing
The test happens once there is serious intent and before a memorandum or contract is signed. If you have already signed, check for an inspection clause or a cancellation window. For a rental: before the keys are handed over, so the condition is recorded in the landlord's name and not yours.
What to ask the seller for
Access to every exterior wall, the built-in wardrobes and the storage room, and windows closed for about two hours before the visit. A seller who refuses to close the windows has told you something themselves.
Reading the findings
Moisture in a wall with no mold in the air is a waterproofing or condensation problem that can be priced. Mold in the air with no moisture today points to a history that was painted over. Both together mean a renovation, and then the question is who pays for it.
Three ways to use the report
A price reduction equal to the repair cost, a clause obliging the seller to repair and present a repeat test before handover, or walking away with a document that explains why. The report is worded so that both sides' lawyers can quote it.
In a rental: recording the existing condition
A dated report on move-in day is your protection at the end of the lease. Mold that appears in winter on a wall recorded as wet in summer is the landlord's matter, not your deposit's.
The test costs a fraction of a percent of the apartment price, and usually less than the first repair it saves.
What you receive
a report you can attach to the contract.
The report is written so a lawyer, an agent or an appraiser can attach it to the transaction documents without further interpretation.
- A moisture map of the apartment: Every wall measured, with the reading, the thermal image and the date. The dry walls too, because "checked and found sound" is worth money in a negotiation.
- Lab results per sample: Spore concentrations in every room against outdoors, and species identification from every stain, from the partner laboratory.
- An assessment of source and cost: What is causing the moisture, what it takes to fix, and what is worth demanding from the seller. Not a renovation quote, but the basis for a demand.
- An explanation by phone: For you, your lawyer or the agent. We do not give legal advice, but the report is written so that whoever does can use it.
Who orders
who orders this test.
- Buyers of second-hand apartments
- Tenants before signing
- Families moving into a renovated flat
- Real estate lawyers
- Relocation companies
Before you book
What people ask before buying.
Does a standard home inspection not check for mold?
A standard pre-purchase inspection covers electrics, plumbing, waterproofing and structure, and notes mold only when a stain is visible. It does not measure spores in the air, identify species or separate condensation from a leak. A mold test before buying does exactly that, so it complements the home inspection rather than replacing it. If you have already ordered one, send it to us and we will say which walls need measuring.
The seller painted the apartment before the sale. Can you tell if there was mold?
Yes, in two ways. A moisture meter reads the moisture in the plasterboard through the coat of paint, and a thermal camera shows a wall that is condensing or leaking even when it is white and new. And an ERMI test analyses DNA from the dust that accumulated in the apartment over recent months, so it says what grew there before the painting. The two together are the apartment's history, without relying on what the seller remembers.
What do we do with the report if mold is found?
Three options, and the choice is yours with your lawyer. A price reduction equal to the repair cost. A clause obliging the seller to repair and present a repeat test before handover. Or walking away with a document that explains why. The report states the source, the extent and what it takes to fix, worded so that both sides' lawyers can quote it. We do not give legal advice or renovation quotes.
I am renting. Is a test before moving in worth it?
In an apartment with a smell, stains or a north wall behind a wardrobe, yes. A dated report on move-in day records the existing condition in the landlord's name. Mold that appears in winter on a wall recorded as wet in summer is the landlord's matter, not your deposit's. In an apartment with no signs, a short measurement visit without lab samples is enough, and cheaper.
Before you book
Worth reading.
Other situations
not your situation?
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