All new tenancy agreements have been required to include an insulation statement since 1 July 2016. The statement is required to indicate whether a property has insulation or not and if it does, to identify:

• where the insulation is installed

• what type of insulation it is, and

• what condition the insulation is in.
  
  

Insulation will become compulsory

From 1 July 2019, all privately-owned residential rental properties will be required to have roof space and underfloor insulation where installation is ‘reasonably practicable’ – in other words, where it can be installed (the legislation recognises that in some situations such as due to limited access, design, or health and safety reasons, it may be impracticable or unsafe to access to install insulation. For more information, refer to the Tenancy Services booklet – Tenancy Services: Insulation requirements.)

What are we doing about it?

At Nightingales, we have been working through a process to ensure all the rental properties that we manage are compliant by 2019. Please see my previous blog, Insulation in rental properties.

We have identified the properties that require insulation and have arranged for insulation to be installed in some of them. In others, owners have themselves undertaken to have the work done. And of course, for apartments it is not an issue and some properties were already compliant.

Time is running out

While there is still more than a year before the requirement for insulation in rental properties becomes mandatory, time is running out. And as the pressure comes on, it may become more difficult to arrange installation or even obtain insulation that is appropriate for your property. So while we are working on ensuring that all properties that we manage have insulation installed, we urge you to also be proactive in facilitating our ability to get your rental property insulated.