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How to Deal With And Prevent Mildew and Mold

First, start by getting rid of all standing water and water leaks. This is more important than everything else. In particular, ensuring your roof and gutters don't leak and that the gutters drain more than a few feet away from the house is important for reducing dampness. Leaking pipes are also bad; hire a plumber. Nifty tool here: a wet-dry shop vac. Just saying. Also fix all dampness in the basement. Just get it done.
Buy a dehumidifier. Buy a couple. Dump the water daily or even more than that. Alternatively, if you live in a really dry place, leave the windows open all the time, even if it's just by a crack. For more airflow in dry areas you can stick fans in windows. Try to put a fan where the prevailing winds come from, and direct its air so it goes inside, and put another fan on the other side of the house directing the air so it goes outside.
Anywhere that produces moisture, such as the kitchen stove and bathroom, has to have a vent that vents to the exterior. And you have to use it every time.
Waterproof and use only waterproof stuff in bathrooms or you're asking for trouble
To get that soapy mildewy gunk off a bathtub or shower, try this: One Good Thing By Jillee
Use flexible caulk to seal up areas that could otherwise breed mold or let humidity into the house.
Have a regular cleaning and organizing schedule and stick to it or you're screwed
If it's really bad, hire a mold remediator, especially for HVAC vents and AC units. If it's worse, move out.
Trash everything that cannot be recovered. Don't hold on to it or it will contain spores that will reinfect everything else you own no matter how much you clean. Porous surfaces are always suspect.
Open all window curtains to expose all rooms to sunlight.
During the daytime at least, open all doors, including closet doors. Opening cabinet doors is also a good idea. Air it all out.
Turn on all fans. If ceiling fans are not enough to get a good flow of air going, get portable fans and place them in strategic areas.
Turn down the thermostat so it's below 75 F
Wearing rubber gloves and a mask, and working in an area with excellent ventilation and airflow, wipe down all stuff that can be wiped down with 1 part bleach in 10 parts water or a bleach-based spray and a whole lot of single-use paper towels, recycled if you want to be eco friendlier. In theory, you could also use oxiclean diluted according to package directions, but I don't know. I have seen 409 used for this but it's not as effective as bleach.
Bleaching products exist for grout, which seems to absolutely love growing mold, so pick one and try it.
Spray said bleach on everything in a room once everything else is taken out of it - ceilings, walls, fixtures. Wipe it off, then spray again and let dry. Again, make sure there's good ventilation, and work in sections.
If you can afford it, use a vacuum with a HEPA filter to vacuum all your stuff
Get stuff like stuffed animals and other fabric stuff you can't launder, dry cleaned
After cleaning everything you can clean, put it out in the sun, preferably with good airflow. You may need to lay it out in the sun and flip it periodically for several weeks, or even months, before the UV kills it all off.
If you can afford it, putting a bowl of white vinegar in every room helps. Top it up as needed.
There is a granular product called RU-486 which can be put in bowls that absorbs odors. It works very well at that job and may help with mold's bad odor. Keep it away from pets and kids; cover it with mesh or something if you have either.
Salt the floor before you sweep it, then salt it again
Use Febreze in every room at least once a day, if you can afford it. Also helps.
Install weatherproof windows, such as those with inert gas between two glass panes. Also caulk around windows. Temperature changes cause water condensation, which breeds mildew, and this prevents all that
While you're at it, if you have a really crappy thermostat that doesn't keep a constant temperature in the house, see if you can buy a new one. A lo-tek version of this is to store several sealed bottles of water or several large rocks in every room to serve as heat capacitors. Obviously this only works on the ground floor for safety reasons
To really gild the lily, get an electrostatic air filter, such as an Ionic Pro. Note: this will not work if you have not done all of the other stuff.
To gild the lily even more and help prevent mold formation, install skylights.

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