Boarding house owner obligations
Neil asks:
(updated on Monday, September 11th 2017)
What items must the landlord of a boarding house provide to the minimum six residents? Toilet tissue, light bulbs, smoke alarm batteries, dish washing liquid? What does the resident provide? I know about the main things, like furniture, but what about the little things?
Our Experts Answer:
The responsibilities of a landlord of a boarding house are spelled out in sections 66H, 66I and 66J of the Residential Tenancies Act.
Of the “little things” that you mention, the most important are smoke alarms. A boarding house landlord must ensure that these are installed and working at all times. If you are installing smoke alarms you must install those with a 10-year battery life.
Another major requirement is that the tenant’s room must be in a reasonable state of cleanliness and a reasonable state of repair. I suggest that a room without light bulbs is not in a reasonable state of repair.
For the other “little things” a bit of common sense and reason will answer your question… if you were in the tenant’s shoes, what would you expect to be provided?
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