Council house letting standard

Inside your home

Cleanliness

The property will be free from any damp, mould or infestation and made available to you in a clean and tidy condition.

Decoration

As our tenant, you are responsible for the internal decoration of the property, however we will leave existing decoration where this is in a good condition.
A decoration pack may be available where the existing decoration:

has been painted in a dark or strong colour that would be difficult to cover
has wallpaper which is in poor condition such are tears or peeling

The decoration pack is a contribution towards the decoration material and is not meant to cover all costs associated with decorating your new home.
In exceptional circumstances we may decorate the property. The decision to decorate rather than provide you with a decoration pack will be made on an individual basis.

External doors

External doors will:

be in a good working condition with a secure lock
have two sets of keys supplied
have a working letter box and flap on the front door

Windows

Windows will be in a good working condition with restrictors or locks, where appropriate.

Internal doors

All internal doors will:

be in a good condition
open properly with working handles and hinges

Skirtings and facings will be in a good condition

Floors

All floors will:

be in a good condition
where possible, when the existing floor covering is in a good condition, it will be retained unless removal is needed to undertake repairs

Staircases

All staircases will

have at least one handrail
have stair posts and balustrades

Kitchens

The kitchen standard will be:

a minimum of six matching cupboard units with suitable worktops, and a kitchen sink
plumbing for an automatic washing machine
space for a standard fridge
connections for a cooker
tiled splash backs

Bathrooms

The bathroom standard will be

a working toilet with a new seat
a bath, with plug or shower with a new shower curtain
a basin with plugs
wallboards/partial tiling

Heating system

The heating system will be fully operational and, if it gas, solid fuel, wet electric or an air source heat pump it will be:

serviced once a year
commissioned by appointment when you move in to your home, at which time instructions will be given to you on how to operate the heating system

Gas safety check

As a landlord we have a legal obligation to carry out an annual gas safety check where a property has a mains gas supply. We will contact you to confirm when this safety check will take place.

Electrical installations

We will carry out electrical tests every five years to make sure that your home has safe lighting and power

Smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors

The property will have:

a hard-wired smoke detector
a carbon monoxide detector fitted where there is a mains gas or solid fuel appliance

Water and drains

The property will have:

working hot and cold taps in the kitchen and bathroom
a working drainage system
a stopcock or stop valve switch which will be located in the kitchen