ᐅ Apartment Renovated – Unpleasant Odor?!

Hello,

I am new here and not sure if this is the right place to ask.

I have a big problem and am getting desperate.
Situation: A relative inherited a house and converted it into two apartments. Since we no longer got along with the previous tenants of the old apartment, we decided to move in there. Because a man with a dog had lived in the apartment before, it was in rather poor condition.

So we renovated the entire apartment together with the landlord.

Flooring:
Laminate was installed over a stone floor.
Only the kitchen has vinyl flooring.

Walls:
In the hallway, we decided to cover the walls with textured plaster.
All other rooms were freshly wallpapered.

Of course, all old wallpaper was carefully removed beforehand and the new wallpaper was professionally installed.

We only painted the ceiling.

There was no moisture in the apartment, and it was ventilated well throughout the summer.
The electrical wiring was also newly installed beforehand.

Now, the problem. After moving in, we started noticing an unpleasant smell in the apartment.
The first thought was, of course, that it’s a new place and everything still smells new. But after about six weeks, the same smell is still there or maybe even worse.

When you stay in the apartment for about five minutes, you no longer notice the smell — it becomes familiar.

But when you leave the building, the clothes smell strongly, musty. We all have office jobs and have already been addressed by friends about the strange odor on our clothes. Sometimes the smell is even noticeable on newspaper left on the table for a day.

It feels like the smell is everywhere in the apartment.

Of course, moisture measurements have already been taken, but all results were fine.

We have tried vinegar, coffee, and various air fresheners, but without any success.

P.S.: The apartment is ventilated well every day.

Maybe someone with expertise can help me here...

Thanks in advance for any answers!

Best regards, Manu