Arizona Mold Law: Tenant Rights, Disclosure & Insurance
Does Arizona license mold work?
None. The Arizona Registrar of Contractors (ROC) license classification schedule (A/B/C engineering, general and specialty commercial; B/R residential; K/CR dual) contains NO classification for mold assessment, mold remediation, or indoor air quality. Mold remediation is performed under general or specialty contractor licensure (ARS tit. 32, ch. 10). Home inspectors are certified by the Arizona State Board of Technical Registration under ARS § 32-122.02, but that is a home-inspection certification, not a mold credential.
Habitability: what landlords must provide
Statutory; mold is NOT named. Arizona Residential Landlord and Tenant Act: the landlord shall 'comply with the requirements of applicable building codes materially affecting health and safety,' 'make all repairs and do whatever is necessary to put and keep the premises in a fit and habitable condition,' keep common areas clean and safe, and maintain electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilating and air-conditioning facilities in good and safe working order. ARS § 33-1324(A)(1)–(4). Mold must be litigated through this general language. For NEW home construction Arizona recognizes an implied warranty of workmanship and habitability that runs to subsequent purchasers, Richards v. Powercraft Homes, Inc., 139 Ariz. 242, 678 P.2d 427 (Ariz. 1984). (ARS § 33-1324(A)(1)–(2); Richards v. Powercraft Homes, Inc., 139 Ariz. 242, 678 P.2d 427 (Ariz. 1984))
Notice and repair timeline
Two tracks under ARS § 33-1361(A): (a) general material noncompliance — written notice that the rental agreement 'will terminate upon a date not less than ten days after receipt of the notice if the breach is not remedied in ten days'; (b) breach of ARS § 33-1324 materially affecting health and safety — written notice that the agreement terminates 'not less than five days after receipt of the notice if the breach is not remedied in five days.' Mold that materially affects health and safety falls in the 5-day track. Repair-and-deduct requires 10 days' written notice (or sooner in an emergency), ARS § 33-1363(A). Essential services under ARS § 33-1364 require only 'reasonable notice.'
Tenant remedies
(1) Termination on 5 days (health/safety) or 10 days (general) written notice, plus return of recoverable deposits — ARS § 33-1361(A), (D). (2) Damages and injunctive relief — ARS § 33-1361(B). (3) REPAIR-AND-DEDUCT: after 10 days' written notice (or promptly in an emergency), tenant may have the work done by a licensed contractor and deduct the reasonable cost from rent, capped at the greater of $300 'or an amount equal to one-half of the monthly rent' — ARS § 33-1363(A). (4) Essential services: procure substitute service and deduct actual and reasonable cost; or recover damages for diminution in fair rental value; or obtain substitute housing rent-free and recover excess cost up to 25% of periodic rent; plus damages, costs, attorney fees and injunctive relief — ARS § 33-1364. There is no general rent-withholding (escrow) statute. Constructive eviction is common law.
Selling a home: mold disclosure
Yes, by common law rather than statute. Arizona has no residential seller-disclosure statute for resale homes; the duty comes from Hill v. Jones, 151 Ariz. 81, 725 P.2d 1115 (Ariz. Ct. App. 1986): 'where the seller of a home knows of facts materially affecting the value of the property which are not readily observable and are not known to the buyer, the seller is under a duty to disclose them to the buyer.' Known mold or a history of water intrusion that is not readily observable is squarely within that rule. In practice disclosure is made on the Arizona Association of Realtors SPDS form, which is contractual, not statutory. (Hill v. Jones, 151 Ariz. 81, 725 P.2d 1115 (Ariz. Ct. App. 1986). No Arizona seller-disclosure statute for resale residential property.)
Deadlines to bring a claim
Personal injury (mold exposure): 2 years — ARS § 12-542(1) ('For injuries done to the person of another'). Property damage: 2 years — ARS § 12-542(3) ('For trespass for injury done to the estate or the property of another'). Personal property/conversion: 2 years — ARS § 12-542(4). Arizona is a short-SOL state: unlike most jurisdictions it gives property damage the same 2 years as personal injury.
Insurance treatment of mold
No mold-specific statute, regulation, or DOI bulletin located. The Arizona Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions (DIFI) homeowners-insurance consumer page does not address mold coverage, exclusions, or caps. Mold caps/exclusions in Arizona are governed by policy language (typically ISO-style limited 'fungi, wet or dry rot, or bacteria' endorsements) subject to ordinary form-filing review; no state mandate to provide mold coverage was found.
Leading cases
No published Arizona appellate decision squarely on mold was identified. Closest relevant authority: Richards v. Powercraft Homes, Inc., 139 Ariz. 242, 678 P.2d 427 (Ariz. 1984) (implied warranty of workmanship and habitability extends to subsequent purchasers — the standard vehicle for construction-defect water-intrusion/mold claims); Hill v. Jones, 151 Ariz. 81, 725 P.2d 1115 (Ct. App. 1986) (seller's duty to disclose known non-observable material defects).