Documented conditions at 19235 Brynn Court, Huntington Beach, California — present at move-in and continuing throughout the tenancy — not disclosed at listing
The property at 19235 Brynn Court was listed in April 2022 by Anna Ly of Sun Realty and Management as "2 level Peek-A-Poo ocean view beautiful home… NEW carpet, NEW paint, Ready to move in." The documentary record establishes that at the time of listing the property had the following pre-existing and undisclosed conditions:
| Condition | Location | Root Cause | First Documented |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black mold colonies — established growth | Under-sink kitchen cabinet | Ten-year wall leak from unpermitted drain relocation (~2012) | May 1, 2022 — 11:39 AM — move-in day photograph — geotagged |
| Defective electrical outlet | Kitchen — dishwasher plug | Rotted and rusted conductor from chronic moisture — same wall cavity as drain leak | May 1, 2022 — dishwasher full of water on first use — email May 6, 2022 |
| Jumped circuits / doubled conductors | Kitchen wall cavity | Prior unpermitted remodel — wiring cannot carry required load | Discovered by contractor David Ly during repair visits 2022–2024 |
| Active roof leak | Bedroom ceiling above garage | Failing roof assembly — wet structural studs confirmed | Documented by ceiling stain photograph — assessed by contractor |
| Rotten subfloor — non-waterproof laminate | Master bathroom | Prior remodel — cheap laminate installed over failing subfloor | Observed at tenancy — documented at move-out |
| Rotten cabinet framing | Kitchen — dishwasher surround | Ten-year moisture exposure from wall leak | Visible during contractor visits and documented at move-out |
| Mold painted over — concealment | Kitchen — refrigerator wall area | Pre-listing cosmetic concealment — not remediation | Observed at tenancy and documented at move-out |
The kitchen drain was relocated inside the wall approximately ten years before the tenancy commenced — placing the drain pipe above the dishwasher electrical outlet on the same wall stud. This modification was unpermitted. The relocated drain leaked inside the wall cavity for approximately a decade, saturating the drywall and corroding the electrical connections in the same stud bay.
The property owner, Phat L.K. Tran, has held the property since June 2005 — twenty years. He owned the property during the entire period of the drain leak and the resulting moisture accumulation.
A photograph taken by the tenants thirty-nine minutes after arriving at the property on move-in day documents established black mold colonies inside the under-sink kitchen cabinet. The colonies are mature — consistent with months or years of development, not days. The mold radiates from the drain pipe connection area and covers the rear wall of the cabinet.
The maturity of the mold colonies documented at 11:39 AM on move-in day indicates the condition predated the 2022 tenancy. Any prior occupant would have encountered the same condition. The property owner had constructive and likely actual prior notice of the kitchen mold before listing the property.
The listing described the property as having "NEW paint, Ready to move in." The documentary record and photographic evidence establish that fresh paint was applied over existing mold in the kitchen area before listing — a cosmetic treatment that conceals but does not remediate mold. Eight gallons of Glidden Premium paint were left in the garage after the pre-listing preparation, consistent with a deliberate concealment effort across multiple affected areas. Concealing a known mold condition with paint rather than remediating it constitutes fraudulent nondisclosure under Cal. Civ. Code §1710 and a violation of the disclosure requirements of Cal. Civ. Code §1102.
On May 6, 2022 — six days after move-in — tenant Michael Gasio emailed Phat Tran and forwarded a text exchange with Anna Ly documenting that the dishwasher outlet under the kitchen sink was not functioning. The dishwasher had been found full of water on its first use cycle, indicating it was tested and failed before the tenancy commenced. The garbage disposal on the same AC circuit was functional, indicating the appliance itself was not the source of failure — the outlet was.
"There may be a problem in the kitchen wiring — the dishwasher did not turn on and was full of water. I used an extension cord and the dishwasher is fine. The plugs above the sink on both sides don't work. It may be just simply the fuse box. I'll check for a fuse box today. Just wanted to give you a heads up — I know it was just finished construction." — Anna Ly, Sun Realty, text message to tenant, May 6, 2022 (emphasis added)
Anna Ly's acknowledgment that the defect was a construction issue — not tenant-caused — is documented in her own text message on day six of the tenancy. She directed the tenants to self-diagnose by checking breakers and reset buttons rather than arranging professional repair.
Between 2022 and 2024, David Ly of Ly Construction (License #1068334) visited the property four times in connection with the ongoing electrical failures:
Doubled conductors and jumped circuits between rooms are signatures of unpermitted electrical work. The City of Huntington Beach Building Department maintains permit records for 19235 Brynn Court. No permit for the electrical configuration David Ly encountered has been identified in the public record. A subpoena to the Building Department would confirm whether any permit exists for this work.
A ceiling water stain was present in the bedroom above the garage. The stain shows the oval tide-mark pattern consistent with recurring water pooling and evaporation — indicating multiple leak events over an extended period, not a one-time occurrence. Vertical streaking at the wall junction indicates water running from the ceiling accumulation point.
When David Ly was asked during one of his repair visits whether he would go into the attic to investigate the roof, he stated verbally that the property needed a whole new roof. He then applied touch-up paint to the ceiling stain rather than remediating the underlying condition. No roof work was performed during the approximately 700 days of the tenancy following that assessment.
Wet structural studs were confirmed in the roof space. Saturated structural lumber in a roof assembly constitutes a building code violation under California Health and Safety Code §17920.3, which includes among uninhabitable conditions "deterioration, decay, or damage" to structural components.
Anna Ly of Sun Realty and Management served as the listing agent for the 2022 tenancy. Her May 6, 2022 text message — quoted above — documents her personal awareness that the kitchen electrical defect was a construction issue as of day six of the tenancy. She had listed the property six days earlier as ready to move in.
Anna Ly also visited the property prior to listing. The mold condition visible in the May 1, 2022 move-in photograph was present in the under-sink cabinet — a location any walkthrough inspection would have included. No disclosure of the mold condition was made to the tenants.
On March 18, 2023, Anna Ly sent the following email to Yulia Gasio, with Michael Gasio copied, in response to an inquiry about a DocuSign lease document:
"I sent Yulia a DocuSign about 2 weeks ago. After few weeks, DocuSign is not available online. I no longer work for Phat Tran, call him directly." — Anna Ly, email to tenants, March 18, 2023 (emphasis added)
This written statement constitutes Anna Ly's documented termination of her agency relationship with Phat Tran as of March 18, 2023.
The Move-Out Clearance Report (DocuSign Envelope F5D247C2-A1A9-4991-B91F-6A333347A87D) bears Anna Ly's electronic signature and was submitted in connection with the court proceedings. This document was executed approximately seventeen months after her written statement that she no longer worked for Phat Tran.
The document claims $7,835 for carpet replacement due to pet damage on the same property whose pre-existing electrical defects and mold conditions Anna Ly had personally observed and documented. It contains no reference to any pre-existing habitability conditions. The authority of an agent who has terminated the agency relationship in writing to execute binding documents on behalf of the principal is a question for counsel to evaluate under Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code §10130 and the law of agency.
The tenants vacated on August 5, 2024. The following conditions are documented by photographs taken on or near the move-out date:
| Statute | Provision | Application |
|---|---|---|
| Cal. Civ. Code §1941.1 | Landlord duty to maintain habitable conditions | Mold, defective electrical, roof leak — all present at commencement of tenancy |
| Cal. Civ. Code §1942 | Tenant repair and deduct | Dishwasher failure reported — landlord refused repair in writing — tenant purchased replacement — net balance tendered |
| Cal. Civ. Code §1942.5 | Retaliatory eviction presumption | Habitability complaint co-signed by household — eviction proceedings initiated within 180-day window |
| Cal. H&S Code §17920.3 | Uninhabitable conditions — mold, dampness, defective electrical, structural decay | Mold documented at move-in — defective wiring — wet structural studs — rotten cabinet framing — rotten subfloor |
| Cal. Civ. Code §1710 | Fraudulent nondisclosure | Known mold painted over before listing — known electrical defects undisclosed — property listed as ready to move in |
| Cal. Civ. Code §1102 | Material disclosure requirement | Owner of 20 years had knowledge of drain relocation, leak, mold, and electrical defects — none disclosed |
| Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code §10176 | Misrepresentation by licensed agent | Anna Ly listed property as ready to move in with personal knowledge of construction defects — day-six text confirms |
| Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code §7090 (CSLB) | Contractor discipline — failure to disclose dangerous condition | David Ly observed dangerous electrical conditions on four visits — no written disclosure — submitted fraudulent invoice on same property |
All primary documents are available in the Google Drive repository. Originals are untouched. Full evidence portal: gasiomirror.com