A ‘mortified’ Stephen Mulhern has issued an apology to tenants living in one of his rental homes, in a ‘clearly unacceptable’ situation.
The Catchphrase presenter, 47, has an impressive property portfolio, said to be worth £4million.
However, one of his tenants has now spoken out after living through a desperate situation that has left them ‘bitter and alienated’, they told The Big Issue.
The anonymous tenant, who was a key worker during the Covid pandemic, says their mental and physical health has suffered after living with damp and mould for two years.
‘I’ve become more irritable, and my focus has slipped, leading to frustrating mistakes at work,’ they said, providing images of mould across the ceilings and walls of the property.
According to documents on Companies House, Mulhern is director of JFDI Productions limited, with assets worth nearly £4.2million in 2023.
The publication claims that JFDI Productions purchased the bungalow in Leicester in April 2020 in £165,000, and has since refurbished it and rented it out to their tenant and a flatmate, who works for the NHS.
They pay £775 a month to rent the property, but first noticed a problem with damp and mould during an annual inspection with their management agent a couple of years ago.
They claimed to have complained to the management agent several times, but the issue was not solved.
‘The agent merely recommended that we ventilate properly and keep the house warm during the winter. We did, but the damp gradually worsened. We remained patient, sending polite emails at first. In later conversations, my remarks became a bit sharper,’ the tenant said.
The management agency did install a positive input ventilation system after the tenants bought a humidity meter which showed the moisture levels in the property were between 70% and 80% (Philips states good humidity levels range from 30% to 60%).
However, they claim the problem was only alleviated briefly.
The tenant added: ‘My home is Hungary, and I am now planning to return there. The property we are renting will hopefully become someone’s home one day. It would be selfish to think only of myself and the state of this property. This isn’t just a personal issue; it’s a national one.
‘Sorting out the damp in the property is the bare minimum. I also want compensation for the misery and anxiety it has caused me personally, along with stricter legislation at the national level to prevent others from suffering the same fate.’
Mulhern’s spokesperson told Metro: ‘Stephen was absolutely mortified to learn about this situation and the awful experience the tenant has faced which is clearly unacceptable.
‘Stephen had not been made aware of any of these issues as he relies entirely on an independent company who manage the property on his behalf.
‘Having not been aware of the issues until now, Stephen has taken this matter into his own hands immediately and has personally requested for a team of damp specialists to visit the property to make sure that the problems with the ventilation and mould are resolved as a matter of urgency.
‘We have contacted the tenant to express sincere apologies for the distress and frustration the management of this matter has caused.
‘This falls way below the standards Stephen expects and he is doing everything possible to remedy this ASAP, and this process is already underway.’
Metro.co.uk has reached out to the management agent for comment.
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