Insulation only half the answer to damp housing problems

Monday, 13 July 2015, 4:28 pm
Press Release: Community Housing Aotearoa

July 13, 2015

Insulation only half the answer to damp housing problems, CHA says

The new regulation framework proposed by Government for rental properties is better than the status quo but does not go far enough, says Community Housing Aotearoa (CHA), the peak body for the community housing sector, .

Director Scott Figenshow says insulation and fire alarms are very important and CHA applauds the Government for taking this step.

“But insulation is only half of the answer- you still need to heat the house.”

Under plans to strengthen the Residential Tenancies Act, all tenanted properties will require floor and ceiling insulation by mid-2019, while social housing which receives government subsidies will require insulation by July next year. All rentals will also need to have long-life smoke alarms installed.

Scott Figenshow says CHA wants to see effective and efficient heating that families can afford to operate included in the regulations.

“The tenancies provided by community housing providers already exceed these new regulations. Regulation is accepted as necessary by the sector for the operation of social and affordable housing markets,” he says.

Community housing organisations are home to more than 15,000 New Zealanders and CHA believes that “housing is the centre of the jigsaw – if we can fix this we can fix a host of other social problems.”

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Community Housing Aotearoa

Nga Wharerau o Aotearoa

Community Housing Aotearoa is the peak body for New Zealand's community housing sector. Our 110 members build and manage affordable and social housing.

Our Vision is to make sure every New Zealander is well-housed in a warm, safe, dry and affordable home. This is a basic human right.

We work to support the growth and development of community housing providers to enable them to provide affordable and social housing.

We want to demonstrate that community housing is a critical element alongside private and government owned housing. No one can do it alone.

Community Housing Aotearoa aims to:

1. be the voice of the community housing sector
2. build capacity and foster collaboration
3. promote best practice in housing policy
4. champion quality and excellence.

Contact Community Housing Aotearoa

• Website - communityhousing.org.nz/
• Our Place - Learn how we think this can be achieved
• Phone - +64 4 385 8722
• About us - Our 2021 annual report is online here
• Email - support@communityhousing.org.nz
• Link - Members directory
• Physical Address - Level 11, Ranchhod Tower, 39 The Terrace/102-112 Lambton Quay, Wellington