Law
6 min read
Every rental property in New Zealand must meet the Healthy Homes Standards.
As of July 1, 2025, you cannot start a new property tenancy without it being Healthy Homes compliant from day one.
That means even if your property is brand new and meets the building code. It still needs to be Healthy Homes Compliant.
So, you, as the landlord need to confirm that the property is Healthy Homes compliant.
If your property isn't compliant you could be hit with a meaty fine of up to $7,200 for each breach.
In this article, you'll learn what the Healthy Homes Standards are and how to make sure you’re compliant.
The Healthy Homes Standards are split into five key areas.
Each standard is technical. The ventilation standard alone has a 12-page guide from the government!
Here’s a breakdown of the five standards:
Landlords must: “Stop any gaps or holes that cause noticeable draughts.”
This often means blocking unused open fireplaces and chimneys.
However, properties can also fail from small gaps underneath doors that create a draught.
As a property manager, I often see draughts happen between internal-access garages and hallways.
The solution is to install a draught-stopper underneath the door. A handyman may charge around $100 - $150 to buy and install it. But it’s worth it to avoid the fine and be compliant.
You can do it yourself. The materials cost around $50 from Mitre10.
The draught standard isn’t just confined to the bottom of doors.
One Property Academy Podcast listener told us her property failed because of a cat door!
So, if her tenant complained to the Tenancy Tribunal once the standards were live ... she might have had to pay up to $7,200 in fines ... for a cat door!
Ceiling and underfloor insulation have been compulsory in all rental homes since July 1, 2019.
The Healthy Homes Standards go further, setting a minimum R-value for insulation.
The R-value measures how well the insulation resists heat passing through it.
Underfloor insulation across the country needs an R-value of at least 1.3. Ceiling insulation must be at least 120mm thick.
However, the R-value of ceiling insulation depends on where the rental property is in the country.
In Auckland and Northland, where temperatures are warmer, the minimum R-value for ceiling insulation is 2.9.
For the whole South Island and the Central North Island, the minimum is 3.3. And for the rest of the North Island, the minimum is 2.9.
A property might fail this standard because insulation has become less effective, or thinner over time.
That’s where you may need to top up the insulation, adding extra material on top of what’s already there.
One of the most stringent parts of this legislation is heating.
Your house needs to have enough heaters to warm the living room to 18 degrees ... even on the coldest day of the year.
This means there need to be enough "fixed" heaters (like a heat pump).
Investors can use an online assessment tool to calculate the minimum kilowatts needed in your heating appliances to meet this standard.
For instance, running the tool on a 30m2 room in Christchurch City with single glazing means you need a 6.2kW heat pump.
That’s based on:
So, before you calculate the online assessment you’ll need to measure your lounge walls and windows first.
Your room’s shape will also impact how much heating you need.
Keep in mind that you need to heat all areas on the living area. So sometimes newer homes have a harder time meeting this standard. That’s because you might have open plan living spaces or a stairwell. And the whole area needs to be heated to 18 degrees.
On the other hand, the living room in an older property tended to be smaller (and have a door). That’s easier to heat.
All rooms need to have a door or window that can open to the outside and be held open.
These windows and doors also have minimum size requirements. They must add up to at least 5% of each room’s floor area.
Extractor fans are also included in this standard. Kitchens and bathrooms need an extractor fan that ventilates externally.
If you have bought and installed an extractor fan for your bathroom or kitchen after July 1, 2019, there are minimum size and power requirements.
Properties usually fail the ventilation standard because:
The final standard means your rental property has to have enough drainage to remove water from your roof or garden.
It’s got to be robust enough to prevent the house and land flooding after normal rain.
There are two ways homes usually fail to meet the drainage standard:
Even if you clear the leaves or debris blocking a drain, you still need to maintain it.
The landlord is legally responsible for the ongoing clearing of gutters, downpipes and drains.
This includes cleaning out leaves and debris.
This is generally a simple and easy fix as long as the gutters are in a good state of repair.
The Healthy Homes Standards are complex, and you might think your property is compliant when it isn’t.
The best way to do this is to hire an independent professional to assess your property.
This typically costs between $200 – $300. Plus the cost to fix any part of the property that doesn’t meet the standards.
You can complete the Healthy Homes assessment yourself. This saves you money but comes with risks.
Read our article: New Healthy Homes rules: What landlords must know before July 2025 to find out about everything you need to know to be compliant.
Business Development Manager with 5 years Property Management industry experience. Property Investor in Christchurch
Tom Greene is the Business Development Manager at Opes Property Management in Christchurch with over five years of industry experience and is also an experienced property investor. Tom provides tenancy guidance and insight to those both starting and continuing their investment journey.
