Disabled people in rentals most likely to be cold at home

Disabled people in rentals most likely to be cold at home – Media release

14 March 2017

Thirty-eight percent of those disabled people in rented homes said they have difficulty heating, Stats NZ said today.

The rate for non-disabled people in rented housing was 27 percent. Difficulty staying warm was less common for disabled people who live in an owner-occupied home at about 20 percent.

Findings from the 2013 Disability Survey showed people in rented homes were more likely than people in owner-occupied to report difficulty keeping their house warm.

More than 30 percent of disabled people who rent experience damp. The rate for non-disabled renters was just less than 25 percent.

“A cold, damp house is more common for disabled people than non-disabled,” wellbeing and housing statistics manager Litia Tapu said. Overall, 24 percent of disabled people living in rented houses reported both cold and damp, compared with 15 percent of non-disabled people.

The 2013 Disability Survey also found one in six people with an impairment (16 percent) needed some modification to their homes – most commonly changes to their bathroom. One in four (25 percent) disabled people with a physical impairment needed bathroom modifications and about one in six (17 percent) said they needed changes to their home entranceway.

See Disability and housing conditions: 2013 for more details.

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