NZ Healthy Homes Standards 2026

NZ Healthy Homes Standards 2026: Practical Condition, Evidence, and First Step Readiness

This page gives landlords, property owners, and property managers a practical 2026 Healthy Homes baseline. It is decision support, not legal advice, formal certification, engineering sign off, building inspection, council advice, or a Tenancy Tribunal view.

The purpose is to help owners understand the current baseline, organise evidence, identify weak points, and decide when official sources or qualified professionals are needed.

For Wellington Region rental owners and property managers, use this page as a first step readiness screen: record what is visible, keep evidence current, then use official guidance or qualified trades where a formal compliance decision is needed.

For the wider EWG pathway, start with the Healthy Homes hub or the Healthy Homes NZ overview before using this technical standards page.

Current regulatory baseline

Tenancy Services states that all rental properties must comply with the Healthy Homes standards as of 1 July 2025, unless an exemption applies. The five standards cover heating, insulation, ventilation, moisture ingress and drainage, and draught stopping. Source: Tenancy Services – Healthy homes compliance and Healthy homes standards – what a landlord needs to know.

HUD states that the Residential Tenancies (Healthy Homes Standards) Regulations 2019 commenced on 1 July 2019 and aim to address cold, damp, drainage, and draught issues in rental properties. HUD also notes the 1 July 2025 all rentals deadline. Source: HUD – Healthy homes standards.

The 2026 task is ongoing compliance, condition maintenance, and evidence discipline. Tenancy Services says that once a property is up to standard it must stay that way, and anything installed or provided to meet a standard must be kept in good working order or replaced. Source: Tenancy Services – Keeping your property up to standard.

HUD’s 25 September 2025 technical changes reinstated a ceiling insulation exemption for certain homes with limited roof space where other insulation compensates, and clarified that specified Healthy Homes requirements override overlapping older Housing Improvement Regulations for residential tenancies. HUD says the changes affect only a small number of properties. Source: HUD – 2025 update.

Technical table: five standards

Heating standard

The heating standard requires one or more fixed heaters that directly heat the main living room. The heater must be fixed, acceptable, at least 1.5 kW, and able to meet the required minimum heating capacity. Heat pumps and electric heaters need thermostats, and open fires or unflued combustion heaters are not acceptable. Source: Tenancy Services – Heating standard.

The compliance statement asks for the required heating capacity for the main living room to reach at least 18 °C where the capacity is calculated using the Heating Assessment Tool, the formula in the regulations, or a qualified heating specialist. Source: Tenancy Services – Compliance statement.

Tenancy Services provides several calculation routes: the Heating Assessment Tool, the formula in the regulations, or professional assessment. The tool can produce a report showing minimum heating capacity and can help prove the home meets the heating requirement. For complex room layouts or uncertain inputs, Tenancy Services recommends professional advice. Source: Tenancy Services – Calculating heating capacity.

Some modern dwellings and relevant apartments may use the newer heating formula, including properties built to the 2008 Building Code, relevant apartments in qualifying multi storey buildings, and properties where insulation and glazing meet or exceed the 2009 standards throughout. Record why the property qualifies. A heat pump is not automatic proof; the evidence still needs to show fixed status, capacity, thermostat where required, and suitability for the main living room.

Insulation standard

Ceiling and underfloor insulation is compulsory where required. Tenancy Services gives minimum R values by climate zone: ceiling R 2.9 in zones 1 and 2, ceiling R 3.3 in zone 3, and underfloor R 1.3. Existing ceiling insulation installed before 1 July 2016 generally needs to be at least 120 mm thick unless the landlord can prove it met the relevant R value when installed and has not degraded by more than 30%. Existing insulation must be in reasonable condition, with no mould, dampness, damage, or gaps. Source: Tenancy Services – Insulation standard.

Older properties often create evidence issues: missing product tags, uncertain R values, patchy coverage, restricted access, or old photos that no longer reflect condition. The first step is to separate visible evidence from assumption. Exemptions should be specific and current, especially where access is unsafe or impracticable, where spaces are directly above or below other habitable areas, or where the 25 September 2025 limited roof space insulation update may apply.

Ventilation standard

All habitable rooms need at least one openable window, door, or skylight to the outside that can be fixed open. The openable area must be at least 5% of that room’s floor area. Kitchens and bathrooms need an extractor fan venting outside, or qualifying continuous mechanical ventilation. Source: Tenancy Services – Ventilation standard.

For extractor fans installed after 1 July 2019, kitchens require 150 mm fan/ducting diameter or at least 50 L/s exhaust capacity. Bathrooms require 120 mm diameter or at least 25 L/s. Tenancy Services advises landlords to get written fan diameter, ducting, and flow rate details from installers.

Common failures are disconnected ducting, blocked exterior grilles, fans discharging into roof space, recirculating rangehoods mistaken for extraction, and missing specifications. After repairs or upgrades, update records with fan type, discharge route, diameter or flow data, and photos.

If the issue is condensation, stale air, moisture, mould clues, or comfort rather than a narrow compliance record, compare this page with EWG’s Indoor Environmental Quality first checks.

Moisture ingress and drainage standard

Rental properties must have efficient drainage for stormwater, surface water, and groundwater, including an appropriate outfall. Drainage systems must include gutters, downpipes, and drains for roof water removal. If the property has an enclosed subfloor, a ground moisture barrier is required where possible. Source: Tenancy Services – Moisture ingress and drainage.

Ground moisture barriers are usually polythene sheets installed under the house, or an alternative barrier with vapour flow resistance of at least 50 MNs/g installed by a professional installer. Escalate where there is recurring ponding, flooding history, difficult subfloor access, unsafe conditions, or uncertainty about the outfall.

Draught stopping standard

The draught stopping standard requires rental properties to be free of unreasonable gaps or holes in building elements that allow noticeable draughts. Tenancy Services says the age and condition of the house cannot be used as a reason not to stop gaps or holes. Open fireplaces must be closed off or the chimney blocked unless the tenant asks in writing for the fireplace to be available and the landlord agrees. Source: Tenancy Services – Draught stopping.

Checks should include door gaps, windows, old service penetrations, floorboard gaps, ceiling penetrations, fireplaces, and areas disturbed by recent trades. Escalate where asbestos, structural issues, wood burner consent, or complex repair work may be involved.

Compliance statement and records

New, renewed, or varied tenancy agreements must include a signed statement with details of the property’s current level of Healthy Homes compliance. The template covers all standards and exemptions. Source: Tenancy Services – Compliance statement.

Landlords must keep records and documents showing how they comply. Tenants can request Healthy Homes compliance information, and landlords must provide it within 21 days. Tenancy Services’ record keeping guidance lists examples such as code compliance certificates, heating calculations, specialist details, certificates of acceptance, invoices, photos, product manuals, professional evaluations, and LIM or building information reports. Source: Tenancy Services – Healthy homes compliance and Receipts and accurate records.

Update the evidence folder after any new heater, fan replacement, insulation repair, drainage work, fireplace blocking, roof or gutter repair, professional advice, or exemption change.

EWG first step readiness logic

EWG can help with practical readiness: reviewing what evidence exists, identifying missing information, checking obvious condition questions, preparing a simple issue list for trades or professionals, and helping property managers create a repeatable triage pattern across a portfolio.

EWG should refer out where the issue requires formal certification, legal interpretation, engineering judgement, building consent advice, gasfitting, drainlaying, electrical work, specialist ventilation/heating design, asbestos risk management, or tenancy dispute advice. Where the issue overlaps with winter comfort, heat loss, controls, or energy use patterns rather than strict Healthy Homes compliance, EWG can redirect to Thermal Comfort Check or Energy Savings support.

For broader living-condition checks outside formal rental compliance, see Healthy Living at Home. For a practical first-step enquiry, use the Contact page.

Technical table: evidence pack

Healthy Homes standards Q&A

Does EWG certify Healthy Homes compliance?

No. EWG supports readiness, evidence organisation, issue triage, and first step clarity. It does not certify compliance.

Does every rental need to comply now?

Tenancy Services says all rental properties must comply from 1 July 2025 unless an exemption applies. Source: Tenancy Services – Healthy homes compliance.

What if a property has an exemption?

Record the exemption, why it applies, and whether it is still current. Do not rely on a general assumption. Source: Tenancy Services – Exemptions.

Does a heat pump automatically mean compliance?

No. A heat pump may be acceptable, but the property still needs evidence that it is fixed, directly heats the main living room, and meets required capacity.

What records should be kept?

Keep the compliance statement, calculations, photos, receipts, invoices, installer details, fan specifications, insulation evidence, professional assessments, product manuals, maintenance notes, exemption evidence, and relevant communication records.

What should be checked after repairs or upgrades?

Check whether the compliance statement and evidence folder still match the property.

When should a landlord use a qualified professional?

Use qualified professionals for specialist heating, electrical, gasfitting, drainlaying, complex ventilation, building consent, unsafe access, asbestos, structural, or legal/compliance uncertainty.

Conclusion

Healthy Homes in 2026 is not mainly a deadline story. It is an ongoing property condition and evidence story. The strongest position is to keep the five standards working, keep records current, and know when a question needs official guidance or a qualified professional.

EWG can help with the practical first step: organise what is known, identify obvious gaps, prepare better questions, and choose the next pathway before larger costs or formal services are engaged.