Healthy Homes Assessment Rongotai

Rental Property Expert Advice

Healthy Homes Assessment Services

Did you be aware that the Healthy Homes Standards came into effect on the 1st July 2021? Landlords are now required to ensure their Rongotai rental properties meet the minimum Healthy Homes Standards within 90 days of a new or renewed tenancy, and all private rentals must be fully in compliance by July 1st 2024.

The areas covered in the Healthy Homes Standards are:

• Draught Stopping
• Heating
• Insulation
• Ventilation
• Moisture Ingress & Drainage

We can assess your rental property to check whether it’s in compliance with the NZ Healthy Homes and Residential Tenancy Acts standards. After the assessment, we’ll advise you or your property manager about the work that requirements to be completed, and offer a report with all the necessary information for your tenancy agreement’s Healthy Home Statement of Compliance.

Failure to comply with the requirements in the Healthy Homes Standards is a violation of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986, and landlords who are not complying may be liable for up to $7,200 plus additional healthier homes relevant fines.

We are completely independent assessors of rental property, we are fully qualified to assess each of Healthy Homes and Homefit.

Call Now (04) 280 6779

Rental Property Healthy Homes Fines

Fines for Failing to Comply

From the 1st of July in 2021, once a new or renewed contract is signed on a Rongotai rental property, all Healthy Homes compliance tasks have to be done inside of 90 days.

Beginning on July 1st, 2021, once a new, renewed or varied contract is signed on the Rongotai rental property, all Healthy Homes compliance work must be completed inside of 90 days.

Failure to comply with one of the Healthy Homes Standards by the end of the expected timeframe can result in penalties of up to $7200. In addition, if the current Healthy Homes Statement of Compliance isn’t incorporated in a new, renewed or amended tenancy agreement there could be an additional penalty or infringement fee.

Any tenant may request details about the Healthy Homes Standard and how they are related to the house they live in. If the property manager fails to supply the required information within 21 days from being informed of the request, they will receive an infringement notification and be fined up to $750.

In addition, there is also a penalty of approximately $900 for landlords or property managers that provide false or incorrect Healthy Homes Compliance Statement or information. The person liable to pay this fine is the one who is named on the lease contract as the person who is letting the property, so it could be the landlord’s name or the company that manages the property.

The information contained in the Compliance Statement requirements to be accurate before the tenancy agreement can be signed, and ideally it must be updated through the tenancy period as necessary work related to it is finished.

It’s important to remember that a landlord with several rental properties can face additional fines for non-compliance. The highest penalties are reserved for severe breaches, and landlords with at least six rental properties could be fined as high as $50,000, and as much as $100,000 in the case of hearing claims.

If you fail to comply with requirements of Healthy Homes requirements can hit your pocket hard, resulting in large fines in addition to continuing to be required to comply with the requirements. Don’t risk your rental property Contact us now and make arrangements to have an home inspection performed for your rental property.

Check out the complete details of the Residential Tenancies Act landlords responsibilities.

Healthy homes are important

Why is Healthy Homes Compliance so Important?

About 1 in 3 households rent in New Zealand and Rongotai, and research suggests that rental houses are most likely to be older, colder, are not as efficient heating, and generally tend to be lower quality than the houses of owners.

Cold, damp and mouldy homes are linked to negative health outcomes, particularly ailments like colds and influenza, asthma, and cardiovascular diseases. Additionally, those who reported at least four key home quality issues often suffer from lower levels of satisfaction with life and a decrease in well-being.

Improving the standard of Rongotai rental property can help tenants enjoy better physical and mental health, and lessen the disruption to work, learning and daily life due to illness. Your investment is also better protected from mildew, mould and damp damages, which means lower maintenance costs in the long run.

The Healthy Homes Standard is a list of specific and minimum requirements for heating, insulation, Ventilation, Moisture Ingress and Drainage, and Draught-stopping within Rongotai rental properties.

Begin now by calling about having a Rongotai Healthy Home assessment on your rental property today.

Unreasonable Gaps & Holes

Draught Stopping Rongotai

Draughts are a major cause of less temperature in households. A cold house is more expensive to heat, which completed jobs in wasting energy and incurring higher costs.

If a draft can be felt from unreasonable gaps or holes, it needs to be sealed.

What are unreasonable gaps and holes?

If you can feel external air getting in, or see the sound of a clear draught emanating from a hole or gap that is, it is most likely a gap or crack that requirements sealing in any way. Cracks and gaps that are large should be stopped permanently. Cracks that are greater than 3mm and allow air to enter or exit of your house require sealing. For example, if the open fireplace isn’t in use it can create draughts. This should be sealed off. Landlords and property managers are responsible for making sure that draughts from the fireplace are removed whenever possible.

You don’t need to block holes or gaps in the building. For instance, small gaps around windows and doors could be required to allow movement of the structure as the home gets warmer and cooler, to allow them to be shut and opened, rather than being stuck. We will inspect all windows and doors during your Healthy Homes assessment of your rental property.

See the full details regarding the Healthy Homes draught stopping requirements.

Adequate heaters are important for healthy houses

Heating Rongotai

Rental properties in Rongotai need to have a stable source of heat that can warm the largest or main living room to at least 18degC even on the most coldest days of the year. This is the minimum indoor temperature recommended by the World Health Organisation for people’s physical well-being and mental well-being.

The source of heat requirements for it to be permanent (i.e. not portable) with at minimum 1.5 horsepower in capacity, and it must have the minimum heating capacity needed for the main living space. A Heating Assessment Tool can be used to check if the permanent heater(s) are sufficient or whether you will need to ‘top up’ by adding a second heater. Open fires as well as unflued combustion heaters such as portable LPG bottle heaters aren’t considered to be safe heating options for The Healthy Homes Standard.

If the heating you offer is an electric heater (or heat pump), it requirements to be equipped with an thermostat. This makes the heating more reliable and efficient. For the majority of homes, bigger fixed heating systems such as heat pumps, wood burners pellet burners, flued gas heaters will be required. However, in some cases such as small apartments, a smaller fixed electric heater could be enough.

If your living space is already equipped with a fixed heating source, like heat pumps, it could need some additional energy in order to comply with the standards. Certain kinds of heaters aren’t able to be used to meet the quality since they’re either not efficient, cost prohibitive to operate or unsafe to operate.

Get the complete information to the Healthy Homes heating needs.

Ventilation Rongotai

Every living space of a rental home must contain at minimum one open doors or windows to provide natural ventilation. In addition, high moisture areas like kitchens and bathrooms need to have an venting fan outside to eliminate moisture.

This ventilation quality is all about recognising the fact that dry air is more easy to heat and that a property that is well ventilated is less likely to be a victim of mould and damp.

Living rooms, bedrooms, kitchens, and dining rooms are all considered living spaces. Connecting spaces like the hallways are not liveable , and thus are not require an opening door or window.

Each door, window or the skylight needs to be able of opening to the outside while remaining set in an opening position in order to allow for fresh air circulation and air flow.

The bathrooms in all kitchens and any other room in your home that has a bath, shower, cooktop or other high moisture generating item will require suitable extractor fans that vent to the outside. We offer a Healthy Homes Assessment service will verify that there is enough ventilation in every living space with the right extractor fan in high moisture areas.

Learn more about The Healthy Homes ventilation standard.

A comfortable, dry home is a healthy house

Insulation Rongotai

Insulation for underfloor and ceilings is a requirement on all rental homes since 1 July 2019. Property managers and landlords must make sure that the insulation meets this new standard. In some instances, old ceiling insulation as well as insulation within the sub floor space may need to be filled with or replaced.

A well-insulated property can help control condensation and lower the chance of mould and dampness, and it will make it easier to allow the house to keep warmth.

Insulation needs to meet the R-values that are appropriate for your region.

The "R" is a symbol for thermal resistance and is a measure of how well the insulation is able to resist heat flow. The greater the R-value, the more effective the insulation.

• Zone 1 - Auckland & Northland Ceiling R 2.9 in the underfloor, 1.3
• Zone 2 – the rest of the North Island except Taupo and the Central Plateau – ceiling R 2.9 and floor R 1.3
• Zone 3 - North Island Taupo, Central Plateau and all of the South Island – ceiling R 3.3 and underfloor R 1.3

See the full details of the Healthy Homes insulation quality.

Rongotai Moisture Ingress & Drainage

The security of your rental home from moisture isn’t just about the inside; you have to ensure there is somewhere for surface or ground water and stop it from coming into the building. When it is about damp and water, it is often what you don’t see that can cause a lot of trouble that can cause damage to your investment and harming your tenant’s health.

Rental properties need to be equipped with effective drainage to remove storm water, surface water and ground water, including an appropriate outfall or runoff. Making sure that water has a proper place to go, and that it doesn’t sit beneath buildings is a vital aspect of keeping your property dry.

In addition to a drainage system to prevent water ingress, if the apartment has an enclosed gap between your floor and soil, a ground-water barrier should be put in place if it is reasonably practicable to do so.

An underground moisture barrier usually an insulating sheet of polythene laid over the ground, in order to block any moisture that is present in the ground from getting into the property. It also helps to prevent from causing damage to the flooring insulation.

See the full details of this Healthy Homes moisture ingress and drainage standard.

Is your rental a Healthy Home?

Rental Property Home Assessments Rongotai

The areas of rental property that are affected by the Healthy Homes Standard in Rongotai include each:

• Living Rooms
• Bedrooms
• Dining Room
• Bathroom
• Kitchens
• Laundry

Checking Your Healthy Home?

Home Assessments Rongotai for Rental Properties

There are numerous concerns to be able to examine in a home evaluation to determine if your rental property is in compliance with the minimum requirements of the Healthy Homes Standard. There are a few examples:

• Is the space under the floor well-insulated? Is there a ground water barrier in place?
• Is the ceiling insulation in need of topping up? need replacement or topping?
• Do you think the heating system has sufficient capacity?
• Is there adequate drainage and draught-stopping?
• Does the house has enough ventilation, including extractor fans?

The consequences of not having the Healthy Home with regard to The Residential Tenancies Act and consequently falling on the wrong side of a ruling on tenancy services ruling could be significant for landlords and property managers. For expert advice, call today to book your rental properties house evaluation.