Healthy Homes Standards NZ: What Landlords Must Do in 2026

What the Healthy Homes Standards Actually Require

Every private rental in New Zealand must meet five minimum standards under the Residential Tenancies (Healthy Homes Standards) Regulations 2019. The five are heating, insulation, ventilation, moisture ingress and drainage, and draught stopping. They apply to all tenancies governed by the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 — traditional residential tenancies, boarding houses, and Kāinga Ora properties alike.

The standards set measurable benchmarks. Your main living room needs a fixed heater that can reach 18°C, calculated using the official Heating Assessment Tool. Ceiling and underfloor insulation must hit specific R-values based on your climate zone. Every liveable room needs openable windows covering at least 5% of its floor area. Kitchens and bathrooms need mechanical extraction venting directly outdoors. Subfloors need a ground moisture barrier, gutters and downpipes must work, and unreasonable gaps need sealing.

These are not suggestions. They are statutory obligations enforced by the Tenancy Tribunal, with fines of up to $7,200 for non-compliance.

The Final Deadline Has Passed

The rolling compliance deadlines ended on 1 July 2025. Every private rental in New Zealand must now be fully compliant — no exceptions for when the tenancy started, no grace periods, and no extensions.

If you buy an existing rental that does not meet the standards, you inherit immediate liability. There is no transition window for new owners. The property must comply from the day you enter into a tenancy agreement.

The Five Standards at a Glance

Heating: The main living room needs one or more fixed qualifying heaters — heat pumps, wood burners, flued gas heaters, or certain direct-wired electric heaters — capable of reaching 18°C. Portable heaters, unflued gas heaters, and open fires do not qualify. The required capacity in kilowatts is calculated using the MBIE Heating Assessment Tool based on room size, construction type, and your territorial location.

Insulation: Ceiling and underfloor insulation must meet minimum R-values. Zones 1 and 2 need at least R 2.9 ceiling and R 1.3 underfloor. Zone 3 (Central Plateau and the entire South Island) needs R 3.3 ceiling and R 1.3 underfloor. Existing pre-2016 insulation that is 120 mm or thicker and in reasonable condition still qualifies.

Ventilation: Every liveable room needs openable windows, doors, or skylights totalling at least 5% of the room's floor area. Kitchens with cooktops need mechanical extraction of at least 50 L/s through ducting of at least 150 mm diameter. Bathrooms need at least 25 L/s through 120 mm ducting. All extraction must vent directly outdoors — not into the roof space or wall cavity.

Moisture ingress and drainage: Gutters, downpipes, and drainage must function properly. Enclosed subfloor spaces need a ground moisture barrier (polythene sheet) installed to NZS 4246:2016 specifications, with sheets overlapped by at least 75 mm and taped at seams.

Draught stopping: Unreasonable gaps and holes in walls, ceilings, windows, doors, and floors must be sealed. Open fireplaces must be blocked or fitted with a draught stopper unless the tenant requests in writing that the fireplace stays open and the landlord agrees.

What You Must Prove — The Compliance Statement

You need a signed Healthy Homes Compliance Statement (Form HHS-8113 or equivalent) attached to every new, renewed, or varied tenancy agreement. This form covers all five standards, details your heating capacity, insulation specifications, ventilation setup, drainage status, and any exemptions you claim.

Failing to include the required signed statement is an unlawful act under section 13A(1F)(a) of the RTA, carrying exemplary damages of up to $750. A statement the landlord knows is false or misleading is an unlawful act under section 13A(1F)(b), carrying up to $900.

Beyond the statement, you need to keep documentary evidence — heating tool reports, insulation receipts, fan specifications, photos of installed barriers — for the duration of the tenancy plus 12 months. Tenants can request this information in writing, and you have 21 calendar days to provide it.

What Happens If You Do Not Comply

The Tenancy Compliance and Investigations Team (TCIT) at MBIE can audit rental properties and initiate Tribunal proceedings independently of any tenant complaint. Tenants can also apply directly.

The Tribunal can award exemplary damages of up to $7,200 for failure to meet the standards. It can also order you to carry out specific work and set deadlines for completion.

If the Tribunal finds a reasonable connection between a tenant's Healthy Homes complaint and a termination notice, it can declare the notice retaliatory and void under section 54 of the RTA. Giving a notice declared retaliatory is an unlawful act and may expose you to exemplary damages.

Getting Your Property Compliant

Start with what you can measure. Run the official Heating Assessment Tool with accurate room dimensions, insulation details, and window data to check whether your existing heater meets the required kilowatt output. Check your insulation depth and condition. Verify that bathroom and kitchen fans vent outdoors, not into the roof space. Inspect gutters and subfloor barriers. Seal visible gaps around doors, windows, and floors.

Keep every receipt, invoice, tool report, and dated photo. When you hire a tradesperson — an EWRB-registered electrician for heat pump work, a PGDB-registered gasfitter or plumber for gas or drainage — get their registration number and a written scope of work.

The NZ Healthy Homes compliance guide walks through each standard with the evidence you need for your compliance file, the contractor specifications to hand to tradespeople, and the exact fields on Form HHS-8113.

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