Suffern couples seeks $30M in mold suit

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Suffern couples seeks $30M in mold suit

By DAVID SCHEPP

dschepp@...

http://www.thejournalnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?

AID=/20060405/NEWS03/604050356/1019/NEWS03

THE JOURNAL NEWS

(Original publication: April 5, 2006)

A Suffern couple's wedding gift to themselves has resulted in a $30

million lawsuit after their newly purchased home proved to be

infested with mold, according to a lawsuit filed in state Supreme

Court.

Ira and Clement knew something was wrong the November day in

2003 they moved into the Airmont home, which they first saw in

August and purchased for $430,000. The windows in the front of the

house were so fogged up the Clements couldn't see out of them,

according to the lawsuit filed in February.

About a month later, the couple noticed a " darkness " on the walls of

their son's bedroom, which then spread to other bedrooms.

By March, the mold became so pervasive the couple hired a heating

contractor who determined, among other problems, that a ceiling

duct " was full of mold " and that the " air-conditioning duct and unit

itself contained mold. "

By May, the Clements began feeling ill and enlisted the aid of a

microbial expert to perform tests.

The complaint claims that the expert found " dangerous mold, "

including stachybotrys, in the house. Stachybotrys is known to cause

respiratory problems.

The mold is believed to have grown due to a leaky roof and

insufficient drainage outside the home, according to the complaint.

The couple moved out a month later but today still pay the mortgage,

taxes and other bills associated with the house, which is said to be

uninhabitable, in addition to rent for their Suffern apartment.

" At the time we had moved out, which was in June, we were panic-

stricken that we were going to die, " said Ira Clement, a Suffern

optometrist. " We left everything in the house. "

The house must be stripped to its studs and rebuilt, he said.

The Clements have filed suit because the people they hired to

protect their interests failed them, according to their attorney

Appel. Those parties include the Clements' real-estate

attorney, Zelmanow; their real-estate agent and agency,

Delaney of Delaney Realty Corp. in Suffern; and home

inspector Arcenio Pena, chief executive at FTF Inspection Corp.,

based in Nanuet, according to the lawsuit.

The complaint alleges that Delaney advised the Clements " that Pena

was a highly qualified, reputable home inspector with whom she had

done substantial business. "

Delaney's attorney, Ellsworth, said yesterday the suit was

without merit and said there was motion before the court to dismiss

the case.

With regard to Pena, the complaint alleges his inspection report was

deficient and misrepresented the condition of several areas of the

house and its lot, including an " improperly pitched " slope

that " could create serious water problems. "

Pena yesterday didn't return a call seeking comment placed to

HomeTeam Inspection Service in Suffern, with which Pena shares an

address.

The Clements also have named the former homeowners, J.

Shovlin and Galligan Shovlin, neither of whom still live in

Rockland, according to the filing. A call placed to Shovlin at

her Freehold, N.J., address went unanswered, and the phone number

listed for Shovlin at his Grosse Pointe, Mich., address was

disconnected.

The Shovlins declined to complete a property condition disclosure

statement that would have required them, among other things, to note

any water damage or drainage problems.

Under a 2002 New York law, they were allowed to do that. In return,

the Clements, as all homebuyers do when a disclosure form isn't

completed, received a $500 credit at closing.

The Clements are seeking $20 million in compensatory and punitive

damages from Delaney, Delaney Realty, Pena and the Shovlins.

The suit also seeks $10 million in compensatory damages from

Zelmanow.

The ordeal has disrupted and put the Clements' lives on hold for the

past two-and-a-half years, Ira Clement said.

Still, he said, he hoped the lawsuit at least would serve as a

cautionary tale to other would-be homebuyers to not simply take the

advice of their real-estate agent in recommending home inspectors.

Moreover, he said, if the Shovlins had completed the property

condition disclosure form, the Clements would have been able to make

a better-informed decision about buying the house.

" We could have walked away from it if we knew what was wrong with

the house, " he said.