Mold-Help.org - The world's largest TOXIC MOLD website
  • Mold Basics
    • Mold Overview
    • Mold Symptoms
    • Mold Types & Images
    • Fungal Infections
  • Resources and Tools
    • Home Care
    • Health & Diet
    • Tips for Parents
    • Coping with Loss
    • Private Research
    • Legal Suggestions
    • Mold in the Bible
  • Mold News
    • Current Headlines
    • “Sick Buildings”
    • The Environment
    • Construction Industry
    • Govt. & Politics
    • The Workplace
    • Landlords & Tenants
    • Insurance Companies
    • Schools & Institutions
    • Strange Fungal Tales
    • Personal Mold Stories
    • Additional Articles
  • Agencies & Experts
  • About Mold-Help
    • Mold-Help News
  • Search
  • Menu Menu
  • Twitter
  • Facebook

Moldy House Creates Stalemate

July 21, 2009/in Construction Industry /by Carolyn Willbanks

Tualatin, OR – It’s more than a home to the Hughes family. “I’ve had deer down here, an otter lives in the creek and ducks visit nearly every day,” said Hughes.

‘Dream home’ a moldy mess He designed the newly constructed Tualatin home for his two kids and as a place to hold workshops for his non-profit organization that counsels teens. The place is now uninhabitable because of what’s lurking behind the walls. Independent tests showed black mold everywhere. The mold is apparent on studs, drywall and installation. 

The Hughes family moved out after just 9 months in their dream home. The family videotaped their experience as a dank smell overtook the home along with moisture seeking insects.

“Look at this – thousands of ants are going into the ceiling they are throughout the house. I just, I just can’t live here,” said 13 year old Nick Hughes right before moving out.

His 17-year-old sister Taylor said, “My throat started itching. I instantly got congested and my nose started running. I also got terrible headaches after being in the house for only minutes.”

The Hughes family decided to pitch an army surplus tent. They lived in the yard while they worked to find a solution. This is very common among the thousands of mold victims each year who are forced to lose their home and belongings as they are contaminated. It was fun at first, but the novelty wore off in about 3 months.

Hughes claims his builder won’t cooperate to fix the moldy mess, neither will his insurance company which excludes mold coverage relating to construction. Hughes says even his lender refused to discuss the issue unless he was three months behind on his mortgage payments.

“I vacillate between sadness and rage, where I am just livid that this kind of thing can happen to people and you know what? Nobody seems to care. I mean, it’s mind boggling,” said Hughes photographs taken during construction appear to show how the home’s builder Chris Baldwin framed the house during intense winter rains.

“I went to him and said ‘aren’t you going to dry this out?’ ‘Oh no we do this all the time,’ even though there were subcontractors that said this needs to be dried out before you put up sheetrock. Well, he didn’t dry it out,” claims Hughes.

An attorney representing the builder Chris Baldwin of Woodland, Washington would not comment on the case, saying his client is in the middle of litigation.

Hughes claims independent mold experts estimate it will cost at least 400,000 dollars to make the home safe to live in. Hughes hired an attorney, broke down the tent and moved into an apartment. His kids moved in with their mother.

“If the builder or the builders attorneys or the builders insurance company don’t think mold is an issue, then I invite them to come and I’ll furnish the house and they can move in here with their families and live here for six months and if they do that, I’ll drop the case.

About 14 months after being forced out of his dream home, there is no end in sight to this moldy financial and emotional mess. 

Carolyn Willbanks
Author: Carolyn Willbanks

Tags: mold, Oregon, house, mold house, moldy house in Oregon
Share this entry
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Reddit
  • Share by Mail
https://www.mold-help.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/moldhelp-654x300.png 0 0 Carolyn Willbanks https://www.mold-help.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/moldhelp-654x300.png Carolyn Willbanks2009-07-21 13:13:592019-03-28 17:17:28Moldy House Creates Stalemate
You might also like
Mold-Help logo Cylindrocarpon
Mold-Help logo What if Nothing Works?
Courthouse gavelImage by TPHeinz from Pixabay Massachusetts Courthouse Shut Down Due to Mold
Mold-Help logo Southern homeowners group harried over mold
Mold-Help logo Cape Woman Sues Allstate for Mold Remediation
Mold-Help logo District to Get Refund for Cleaning Mold at School

Mold News

  • Current Headlines
  • "Sick Buildings"
  • The Environment
  • Construction Industry
  • Govt. & Politics
  • The Workplace
  • Landlords & Tenants
  • Insurance Companies
  • Schools & Institutions
  • Personal Mold Stories
  • Strange Fungal Tales
  • Additional Articles

Latest Posts

  • Michigan Family Finds Toxic Mold Inside Home
  • California Winter Storms: Water Damage and Mold Exposure Concerns in California
  • Office and Commercial Buildings at Risk for Mold after COVID-19 Closings
  • COVID-19 Symptoms May Include Loss of Taste and Smell
  • New Mold Detox Information on the Horizon
  • COVID-19 Courses of Action
  • Stachybotrys
  • Simple and Easy Ways to Prevent the Coronavirus
  • Your Air Conditioning Unit Helps Eliminate Mold
  • Construction Workers Are Learning to Control Dust and Debris

Search Our Site:

Need Help with Mold?

Are you being affected by mold or other mycotoxins in your environment? Our team and community has over 15 years experience and can provide guidance. You can reach us by submitting your contact or through our Facebook page.

Have a Story to Share?

We're looking for stories and input to expand our database and to add to the personal experiences we've received from the thousands of victims over the last 15. If mold has impacted your life, please take the time to share your story. Your information is confidential and will only be shared with your permission.

Seeking Mold Experts

Are you an expert in the treatment of mold-affected health illnesses, or a provider of services to victims of mycotoxin exposure? Submit your information for listing consideration in our Agencies & Experts resource database.

Additional Resources

  • Contact Us
  • Sitemap
  • Glossary of Terms
  • Survivor Resources
  • General Inquiries
  • Legal Disclaimer

© Copyright - Mold-Help Organization
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Mold Basics
  • Resources and Tools
  • Agencies & Experts
  • Mold News
  • About Mold-Help
Scroll to top

This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse the site, you are agreeing to our use of cookies.

OKLearn more

Cookie and Privacy Settings



How we use cookies

We may request cookies to be set on your device. We use cookies to let us know when you visit our websites, how you interact with us, to enrich your user experience, and to customize your relationship with our website.

Click on the different category headings to find out more. You can also change some of your preferences. Note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer.

Essential Website Cookies

These cookies are strictly necessary to provide you with services available through our website and to use some of its features.

Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver the website, refusing them will have impact how our site functions. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. But this will always prompt you to accept/refuse cookies when revisiting our site.

We fully respect if you want to refuse cookies but to avoid asking you again and again kindly allow us to store a cookie for that. You are free to opt out any time or opt in for other cookies to get a better experience. If you refuse cookies we will remove all set cookies in our domain.

We provide you with a list of stored cookies on your computer in our domain so you can check what we stored. Due to security reasons we are not able to show or modify cookies from other domains. You can check these in your browser security settings.

Other external services

We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. Since these providers may collect personal data like your IP address we allow you to block them here. Please be aware that this might heavily reduce the functionality and appearance of our site. Changes will take effect once you reload the page.

Google Webfont Settings:

Google Map Settings:

Google reCaptcha Settings:

Vimeo and Youtube video embeds:

Accept settingsHide notification only