Is your rental home fit for human habitation?
As of 1 December (originally 15 July 2022), every landlord is now required to ensure their rental property is in good repair and fit for human habitation.
The Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 (part 4) lays out the landlord's obligations regarding the condition of a rented property and these obligations apply to all occupation contracts made for seven years or less. Any landlord is now obliged to ensure a property is both in repair and fit for human habitation (FFHH) under an occupation contract. Section 92 of the Act sets out the landlord’s obligation to keep the dwelling in good repair and this applies to the structure and exterior of the rental property (including drains, gutters and external pipes), and the service installations in the dwelling, such as those:
- for the supply of water, gas or electricity,
- for sanitation, and
- for space heating or for heating water.
Under section 91 of the Act landlords face an obligation to ensure that, at the commencement and during the entirety of the occupation contract, the rental property is fit for human habitation and these obligations are set out in “The Renting Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) (Wales) Regulations 2022”. These set out the 29 areas for consideration when determining whether a property is fit for human habitation:
- a valid electrical safety certificate,
- carbon monoxide alarms in every room with a gas, oil or solid fuel-burning appliance, including gas boilers
- a mains wired interlinked smoke alarm system.
You can read the legislation Fitness of homes for human habitation: guidance for landlords [HTML] | GOV.WALES and if you have any questions regarding what this means for you and how Smart Lettings can help you please contact us by calling 01656 657033 or email info@smart-lettings.co.uk
