14 December 2017
Homes available to rent in Jersey will soon have to meet minimum standards.
The change to improve standards in the rental accommodation sector was agreed yesterday when the States Assembly approved the Public Health and Safety (rented dwellings) (Jersey) law P66/2017.
It means landlords have to ensure all their rental properties are at ‘Rent Safe’ standard.
The Minister for the Environment, Deputy Steve Luce said ‘This is a long overdue change. For years, people have expressed concern about the awful conditions that some of our most vulnerable Island residents and their children have had to endure.
‘Under this proposed law, we will work in partnership with landlords and tenants to ensure that every rental property will, in due course, meet the basic minimum standards that any modern, developed economy should be able to offer, and that no child in Jersey will grow up in a poorly insulated, leaking or even dangerous home.’
The Minister for Housing, Deputy Anne Pryke said ‘Everyone in Jersey must have access to affordable, good quality and secure housing, but our laws in this area have lagged behind other places. This law is a significant step in the right direction – setting and enforcing minimum health and safety standards in the rented sector so that people can be assured their home is in good repair.’
The Health and Social Services Minister, Senator Andrew Green said ‘The cost of poor quality housing to our community and our health service is immense. The ability to license rented accommodation will help to promote high standards, and professionally managed accommodation which will play a significant part in helping people to lead safe and healthy lives.’
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Link to the Rent Safe scheme on www.gov.je
Rent Safe is an existing accreditation scheme which gives potential tenants information about a home they might rent. The law and Rent Safe will work in tandem.
The same standards will apply across all rented homes, including private sector, social housing and staff accommodation and are based on the Decent Homes Standard.
To meet Decent Homes Standard, homes must meet certain minimum safety standards for housing
- be in a reasonable state of repair
- have reasonably modern facilities and services
- have efficient heating and effective insulation
gov.je