Over the past year, we’ve kept you informed about the Residential Tenancy Amendment Act 2016 (“the Act”), which contains important requirements about insulating rental properties. One of these requirements, which came into effect on 1 July 2016, is that landlords must include an “insulation statement” in all new tenancy agreements. In today’s post, we’re going to explain what an insulation statement covers and how to write one.
Back in October, we discussed the insulation requirements covered in the Act. The Act was created to ensure that rental homes provide an adequate standard of living to tenants. Insulation helps keep tenants warm, dry and comfortable in their home. The Act mandates that all rental homes have an acceptable level of insulation installed by 1 July 2019. Until then, insulation statements let tenants know about the type and level of insulation present in a rental home so they can make an informed decision about renting the home. Insulation statements are an important first step in ensuring that all homes make the required insulation updates by July 2019.
Tenancy Services provides information about the details that must be included in an insulation statement. These include:
In the event that a landlord is not able to get accurate information about insulation in a part of the home, the statement must provide a detailed explanation about the information that is missing and why, and the attempts the landlord has made to get the information.
Tenancy Services has made it easy to write an insulation statement by including this as a standard part of their residential tenancy agreement. If you use this standard template to create a lease, then you will have an outline for creating your insulation statement. The statement requires you to complete 3 steps, as follows:
The insulation statement is then included in the tenancy agreement and signed by the landlord (separately from the signatures for the entire agreement). You can view more detailed information by downloading the Insulation Statement Guidelines PDF.
If you are a landlord, you are legally required to include an insulation statement in all new tenancy agreements. If you fail to do so, or if you make false claims about insulation on the property, you may be fined up to $500.
Our government is committed to improving the quality of living for all Kiwis. As such, they have made an effort to provide detailed information in clear language on the Tenancy Services website. Here are some resources that provide further information:
If you currently have a property managed by McPherson Property Management, then we will help you create the insulation statement for new rental agreements. Our team is very knowledgeable about these statements and can help you gather the information required to complete them. Please contact us today if you need help with an insulation statement or want to learn more about working with our expert team of property managers.
Photos
Roof Insulation by Wendy House, CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
Insulation by Bryn Pinzgauer, CC BY 2.0
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