Tenant says apartment complex would not deal with mold problem

A moldy apartment has forced a Wilmington man to move. He claims the management company would not do anything about it.

Samuel Nixon is moving out of Cypress Grove Apartments. His lease is up, and it could not come soon enough.

"I couldn't breathe," Nixon said. "I began having shortness of breath, couldn't breathe, ended up getting gagged up, had to go to the hospital."

Doctors gave him breathing treatments and an inhaler. A few visits later they recommended Nixon check his apartment for mold and other respiratory irritants.

Nixon contacted the health department and the City of Wilmington's Code Enforcement office. Both found issues with the apartment. The heat was not working, there was mold in the freezer and the toilet was leaking, which soaked through the carpet.

"The man came up and fixed the toilet and stopped the leaks, but by that time it was too late, and then shortly after that we started having a problem with the mildew and the molds growing everywhere," Nixon said.

Look at the vent in the refrigerator, and you will see mold growing. Nixon says management at Cypress Grove would not change out the carpet and basically ignored his complaints.

"If you ever talk to the management around there, then you'll see what I'm talking about," Nixon said. "She denies everything. Everything is perfect, which nothing is perfect."

We tried to speak with someone at Cypress Grove about these claims. They simply said, "No comment." When we told them we saw mold and would be reporting this, they said, "That's fine."

Nixon temporarily moved in with family. He has also filed a consumer complaint with the state Attorney General's office.

The person we spoke with at Cypress Grove refused to tell us who owned the complex. We researched and found out the owner is Berlin Miles Inc. out of Virginia. We left a message, but have not heard back.