Healthy Homes Records NZ: What to Keep, How Long, and the 21-Day Tenant Request Rule

The Two Rules That Catch Landlords Out

Most NZ landlords know they need to comply with the five Healthy Homes Standards. Fewer realise how much harder it is to demonstrate compliance without records. The Residential Tenancies Act 1986 creates two specific documentation obligations that trip up self-managing landlords constantly.

Rule one: retain evidence proving compliance for the duration of the tenancy and at least 12 months after it ends.

Rule two: when a tenant makes a written request for Healthy Homes information, you must provide it within 21 calendar days.

A separate rule concerns the compliance statement itself: failing to provide a signed statement or intentionally making a false or misleading one can carry up to $750 in exemplary damages under section 45(1AD)(a) of the RTA. The evidence-retention and information-request duties remain separate obligations.

What Counts as Evidence

Each of the five standards requires its own category of proof:

Heating: the output report from the official MBIE Heating Assessment Tool (or a Regulation 10A specialist report), plus the heat pump or heater invoice, the installer's Electrical Safety Certificate, and a dated photo of the unit's rating plate showing the kW capacity.

Insulation: purchase receipts or invoices showing R-values and product specifications, installer photos or packaging labels, and — for existing pre-July 2016 insulation — dated photographs confirming the insulation is in reasonable condition and at least 120mm deep.

Ventilation: fan specifications showing diameter and airflow rate (litres per second), installer invoices, and photos confirming ducting runs to the exterior. For natural ventilation, room-by-room measurements showing openable window area meets the 5% floor area minimum.

Moisture ingress and drainage: photos of the installed ground moisture barrier (polythene), drainage infrastructure in working condition (gutters, downpipes connected and clear), and any drainlayer certificates.

Draught stopping: photos of sealed gaps, blocked or fitted fireplaces, and weather-stripping installations. If a tenant has requested in writing that an open fireplace remain unsealed, keep that written request.

For any exemptions you're claiming, add the written professional report confirming the specific limitation (inaccessible subfloor, restricted ceiling cavity, body corporate refusal) and dated photographs.

How Long to Keep Everything

The statutory retention period is the full duration of the tenancy plus 12 months after it ends. For a tenancy that runs five years, you're looking at six years of record retention for that property.

There is no fixed "7-year" or "10-year" rule written into the Healthy Homes Regulations themselves — the retention period is tenancy-linked. But if you manage multiple back-to-back tenancies at the same property, the practical effect is that you keep records continuously and reset the 12-month clock each time a tenancy ends.

Store records both digitally (scanned copies, cloud backup) and physically (a dedicated property binder). The Tenancy Tribunal accepts printed documents, dated photographs, and trade invoices as evidence — but only if you can actually produce them when asked.

The 21-Day Information Request

Under the RTA, tenants have a statutory right to request written compliance information from their landlord. Once you receive a written request, you have 21 calendar days to provide the information.

This isn't optional and it isn't negotiable. Ignoring or delaying the response is treated as a failure to comply with your disclosure obligations.

What tenants typically request:

• A copy of the Heating Assessment Tool report
• Insulation R-values and installation dates
• Extractor fan specifications and installation records
• Ground moisture barrier installation confirmation
• Details of any exemptions being claimed

Having a pre-organised evidence file means responding to a 21-day request takes minutes instead of a frantic weekend searching through email inboxes and kitchen drawers.

Building the Evidence File

The simplest system is a physical ring binder per property, with tabbed sections for each standard:

1. Cover page: property address, current tenancy dates, landlord contact
2. Heating tab: tool report, heater invoice, ESC, rating plate photo
3. Insulation tab: receipts, R-value tags, installation photos
4. Ventilation tab: fan specs, ducting photos, window measurements
5. Moisture & drainage tab: polythene photos, gutter condition, drainlayer certs
6. Draught stopping tab: sealed-gap photos, fireplace status
7. Exemptions tab: installer reports, photographs, compliance statement notes
8. Compliance statements tab: signed copies of every Form HHS-8113 issued

Keep original hard copies in the binder and scan everything to a dedicated cloud folder. Provide copies when responding to tenant requests, and follow any specific directions in a TCIT request.

The NZ Healthy Homes Compliance Guide includes a structured property compliance filing system with evidence checklists for each standard, designed to sit inside exactly this kind of binder. It also includes a compliance maintenance log for tracking ongoing repairs and inspections between tenancies.

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