When the Otago Daily Times visited yesterday, wallpaper was peeling from the walls of the flat, ceilings were sagging under the weight of leaks, mould was growing on the bathroom walls and ceiling, the carpet was disintegrating and the spouting was broken.
The four girls, all from Dunedin, signed up to the Duncan St, City Rise, flat during the warmer months.
"The flat is in a condition that no person should ever have to live in, with broken windows, leaking ceilings, insane amounts of dampness and mould, and rooms that are impossible to heat in the winter and summer," flatmate Danielle Henderson said.
Ms Henderson and flatmates Kirsty Watson, Angelina Blood and Jess Casey have signed a 12-month lease which ends in December and pay $280 a week in rent.
They compiled an A4 page of problems in the flat which they forwarded to their landlord, Cliff Seque.
Mr Seque said he was in the process of fixing the flat, by replacing spouting and putting on new weatherboards to replace rotten ones.
He said the house, like many others in the area, was old and it was therefore "impossible" to make it as warm as a new home.
The house was insulated and had a heat pump.
He would be happy to supply the flat with a dehumidifier if it would alleviate some of the moisture problems.
Ms Henderson said Mr Seque came round one day, when it was raining, to fix leaky ceilings.
He placed a bucket in the ceiling cavity to catch the leaks.
Ms Henderson claimed the bucket overflowed and the water damaged the carpet and lino.
She said some of the windows in the living area were cracked while others had large gaps between the wooden frame and glass.
Two asthmatics in the flat said they had been wheezing and unable to control their asthma since moving into the flat.
Ms Henderson said she had chills in her back which gave her constant pain for two weeks.
