Boarding house owner obligations
Question from Neil updated on 11th September 2017:
What items must the landlord of a boarding house provide to the minimum six residents? Toilet tissue, light bulbs, smoke alarm batteries, dish washing liquid? What does the resident provide? I know about the main things, like furniture, but what about the little things?
Our expert Bernard Parker responded:
The responsibilities of a landlord of a boarding house are spelled out in sections 66H, 66I and 66J of the Residential Tenancies Act.
Of the “little things” that you mention, the most important are smoke alarms. A boarding house landlord must ensure that these are installed and working at all times. If you are installing smoke alarms you must install those with a 10-year battery life.
Another major requirement is that the tenant’s room must be in a reasonable state of cleanliness and a reasonable state of repair. I suggest that a room without light bulbs is not in a reasonable state of repair.
For the other “little things” a bit of common sense and reason will answer your question… if you were in the tenant’s shoes, what would you expect to be provided?
Bernard is principal of Quinovic – Kapiti-Mana. Quinovic's outstanding people and systems provide the most professional, effective and reliable residential property management service in the NZ market for over 30 years.Search the Ask an Expert archive
Browse all questions in the Ask An Expert Archive »