Since the public launch of the New River Tenants Union we have been receiving report after report from tenants of Radford Companies. It is common knowledge among anyone who has rented from them that they are a literal slumlord who has a track record of negligence, constantly in violation of the VRLTA.

We are now in the process of forcing Radford Companies to address the latest health hazard regarding mold, stagnant water, and an untreated drainage issue that’s the source of this problem for multiple tenants. Many of these tenants are older and have serious medical conditions. Exposure to mold puts their health in serious jeopardy. They have already notified Radford Companies of the issue for close to a year now and their response to tenants’ notices was to move out of the trailer park if they didn’t like it. Tenants have also notified the New River Health District of this hazard only to be ignored. Radford Companies consider this your notice from NRTU. According to the VRLTA § 55-248.13:



“The landlord shall maintain the premises in such a condition as to prevent the accumulation of moisture and the growth of mold, and to promptly respond to any notices from a tenant as provided in subdivision A 10 of § 55-248.16. Where there is visible evidence of mold, the landlord shall promptly remediate the mold conditions in accordance with the requirements of subsection E of § 8.01-226.12 and reinspect the dwelling unit to confirm that there is no longer visible evidence of mold in the dwelling unit. The landlord shall provide a tenant with a copy of a summary of information related to mold remediation occurring during that tenancy and, upon request of the tenant, make available the full package of such information and reports not protected by attorney-client privilege.”

As you can see in the pictures below the water source is seeping out from an underground stream which is running across the driveways, front, and back yards of the tenants, as well as running directly underneath one tenant’s trailer where we found extensive white mold, black mold, as well as yellow fungus, growing on the saturated timbers the trailer skirting rests on. You can also see below that the claim of tenants that this has been a problem for around a year rings true when you look at dead spots where water pools around the trailer. This area was once green with grass and use to be mowed by the tenant, now they are completely saturated areas that tenants can’t walk on for fear of injury. Radford Companies did graciously offer to use a weed-eater to trim the areas the tenants can no longer maintain with a lawnmower though!

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Stay tuned for more updates, and if you or friends are having problems with your landlord in the NRV please send us a message!