Is your rental property compliant?

Is my rental property compliant?

We’ve put together a list of the three key areas you need to cover off to ensure your rental property is compliant and fit for tenancy. We are here to work with you to ensure your investment is managed efficiently and expertly at all times. We have a team of qualified tradesman we use to carry out the work required to make your property compliant and remind you when these services need to be completed and certified.

It’s all part of our service guarantee and designed to make owning an investment property as stress-free as possible.

Smoke Alarms

  • Where a smoke alarm is not in working order, landlords and agents must ensure the alarm is repaired (this includes replacing a battery) within 2 business days.
  • Landlords and agents must check smoke alarms every year to ensure they are working.
  • Landlords and agents must ensure:
    1. smoke alarms are replaced within 10 years of manufacture, or earlier if specified by the manufacturer
    2. batteries are installed or replaced every year (or for lithium batteries, in the period specified by the manufacturer).
  • Landlords and agents must give at least 2 business days’ notice to inspect or assess the need for smoke alarm repair or replacement, and at least 1 hour notice to carry out repair or replacement of a smoke alarm.

Water efficiency

  • For a landlord to be able to pass on water usage charges to the tenant, the residential property must be separately metered, meet the water efficiency measures, and the charges must not exceed the amount payable by the landlord
  • The changes provide additional water efficiency measures, including that all taps and toilets on the property need to be checked at the start of a tenancy so that any leaks are fixed. Taps and toilets must also be checked whenever any other water efficiency measures are installed, repaired or upgraded and any leaks fixed. This requirement applies to existing and new tenancy agreements from 23 March 2020.
  • All taps and toilets must not run more than 9 litres of water per minutes, excluding the bathtub.
  • From 23 March 2025, all toilets in rented properties must be dual flush with a minimum three-star rating in accordance with the Commonwealth Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards (WELS) scheme. The WELS scheme uses a rating system to help consumers make informed choices about the water efficiency of products they buy.

Landlords who intend to replace or upgrade existing toilets in their property should consider installing dual flush toilets with a minimum three-star WELS rating to meet the water efficiency requirements by 23 March 2025.

Pool Compliance

  • Fencing – ensure that fences surrounding pools are designed, constructed, installed and maintained to comply with the relevant Australian Standards.
  • ensure that pools are surrounded with a child-resistant safety barrier that separates the swimming pool(s) from any residential building and any place adjoining the property
  • CPR Sign -In case of an emergency the law requires that you have a cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) sign displayed near your pool.
  • The sign must be in good condition and able to be read easily from 3 metres.

Renting a property with a pool -When a residential tenancy agreement is entered into for a property with a swimming pool or spa pool, the landlord or real estate agent must provide the tenant with a copy of the certificate of compliance or occupation certificate.

A certificate of non-compliance cannot be used to rent a property.

Visit the pool safety checklists page on the NSW Government’s Swimming Pool Register for more information.

Contact Mahhab for more help and advice with your investment property.