Builderscrack is seeing a surge in demand for healthy homes-related property upgrades ahead of the July 1, 2025 deadline. Job data shows many landlords are now pushing to ensure their private rentals meet the standards before it becomes a compliance issue. We’ve broken down the latest compliance trends seen on Builderscrack, ways to avoid the compliance bottleneck, average costs of improvements and how to find the right tradespeople for the job to get your private rental up to standard.

Rising demand for healthy homes upgrades

The healthy homes standards were introduced to improve rental property conditions and ensure homes are warm, dry, and energy-efficient. This includes raising the standard for heating, insulation, ventilation, moisture ingress and drainage, and draught stopping. While compliance deadlines have been phased in over the past seven years, data from Builderscrack shows some landlords are still working to get their private rentals up to standard.

Compared to previous years, demand in 2024 for insulation, heating, ventilation, and moisture control jobs has surged, with demand expected to continue into mid-2025.

Key trends around standards

Builderscrack has identified some trends from their extensive data around healthy homes standards.

• Steady increase at both ends: Demand began shortly after healthy homes came into effect in 2019, plateauing for some years in between due to Covid lockdowns and extensions, and then steadily increased throughout 2024.
• Regional variations: Demand for tradespeople and compliance work varied across the country. Major urban regions like Auckland (33 per cent), Canterbury (18 per cent) and Wellington (15 per cent) led demand, followed by Bay of Plenty (8 per cent) and Manawatu-Whanganui (8 per cent) regions. Lesser populated regions like Gisborne (1 per cent) and Marlborough (1 per cent) showed lower demand.
• Common compliance gaps: Of total healthy homes-related jobs, the most frequent issues landlords solved in 2024 was inadequate ventilation systems (33 per cent) and insufficient insulation (30 per cent).
• Cost vs quality: The majority of landlords on Builderscrack prioritised cost over quality when prompted to choose between the two; 89 per cent of job posts highlighted the importance of affordability.

Avoiding the compliance bottleneck

Avoid the stress of last-minute compliance by securing your tradespeople now. Builderscrack.co.nz makes it easy to quickly find and connect with available tradespeople to compare quotes without the hassle of ringing around. Bundling jobs can be useful – some trades can address multiple aspects of the healthy homes standards in one visit. For example, bundling insulation work with moisture barrier work can streamline the number of tradespeople you hire and potentially reduce call out fees.

Make sure you balance cost and quality. Cutting corners on compliance upgrades can lead to costly rework in the future. These upgrades will maximise your return on investment, keep tenants happy and healthy, and reduce long-term repair costs.

Average cost

One of the most common concerns for landlords has been the cost of compliance work. Depending on the property’s condition, upgrades can range from minor fixes to major renovations. Builderscrack’s data shows different buckets of costs for completed jobs, ranging from small to large.

As a rule of thumb for compliance work: small jobs are quoted under $1,000, medium jobs from $1,000-$2,000 and large jobs over $2,000.

In 2024, Builderscrack saw high demand for ventilation jobs with the majority falling in the small bucket, from simple rangehood installations to external vents.

The majority of insulation jobs fell in the medium bucket, since they typically involve multiple areas of the house and require ceiling and underfloor access. Large jobs often address multiple standards in one visit, such as installing heating and range hoods on multiple properties.

While costs vary due to scope and location, here’s a historical summary of what to expect for common healthy homes-related jobs:

• insulation: $550-$8,500, depending on the required top up and total areas of the house
• heating: $500-$4,000, depending on the required heating capacity
• ventilation: $250-$2,200, depending on the complexity of the work
• moisture and drainage improvements: $430-$960, depending on the size of underfloor area and complexity of work
• draught stopping: $130-$4600, depending on complexity and quantity of the work.

Finding the right tradespeople

The healthy homes legislation allows landlords to carry out work themselves where a licensed building practitioner (LBP), licensed electrical worker (LEW) or licensed gas worker (LGW) is not required. However, landlords must employ these licensed workers when it comes to restricted work.

These are the key tradespeople you’ll need for your compliance upgrades.

• Insulation specialists: Insulation and moisture barrier work is tightly coupled. The moisture ingress standard requires a ground moisture barrier in most cases, alongside underfloor insulation. Note that any moisture barrier work involving drainage will require a licensed plumber or drainlayer regulated by the Plumbers, Gasfitters and Drainlayers Board.
• Electricians: You’ll need a licensed electrician (LEW) to perform electrical work on rangehoods, extractor fans, and heat pumps. Electricians can also undertake some heat pump installations, however for more complex jobs, you may want to engage a heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) specialist.
• HVAC specialists: These specialists undertake installation and maintenance of heating systems. Note that all gas-fitting needs to be done by a licensed gasfitter (LGW).
• Builders or handypeople: You’ll need a licensed builder (LBP) for replacing or altering external doors or windows for draught stopping. A handyperson can undertake minor draught-stopping work on doors, windows and hinges.
• Plumbers and drainlayers: You’ll need a licensed plumber or drainlayer for remedying more serious moisture ingress issues such as installing water pipes or drainage systems.

Ensure you ask for a Code of Compliance (CoC) certificate, or Record of Work (RoW) for any restricted building work and keep it on file for future tenancies and property maintenance.

Last call for compliance improvements

With only a couple of months left until the final deadline, landlords should act now to avoid penalties and ensure their private rentals are up to standard. The key to stress-free compliance work is writing a detailed job description and stating expectations around timeframes and documentation.

Builderscrack.co.nz is a leading online home-improvement platform that connects homeowners and trade professionals using patented New Zealand-made tech. Landlords use Builderscrack.co.nz to find, hire and review verified tradespeople for everything from repairs to renovations.