Landlord repair obligations in South Africa are set by the Rental Housing Act 50 of 1999 and the provincial unfair practice regulations made under it. A landlord must keep a rented home in a reasonable state of repair. Where a tenant carries out an urgent and serious repair, the landlord may have to pay them back, unless the tenant caused the damage or never told the landlord.
That summary comes from SAnews on 6 October, the government news agency, which set out the rights and duties on both sides of a residential lease. Infrastructure News carried the same piece the next day. It applies to residential dwellings whoever owns them, and not to business or commercial property.
Some guides quote the Rental Housing Amendment Act 35 of 2014. It was signed in 2014, and the government's summary says its commencement is "to be proclaimed in a Government Gazette". We found no proclamation, so we treat it as not yet in force. Check the Gazette or the Department of Human Settlements before relying on its provisions.
Do I have to pay the tenant's repair bill?
In certain circumstances, yes. A landlord must compensate a tenant for reasonable expenses incurred on urgent and serious repairs. Two conditions apply: the damage was not caused by the tenant, and the tenant notified the landlord or made a reasonable attempt to.
Each condition is a question of fact. Was the geyser burst urgent and serious? Did the tenant phone, message or email before calling a plumber? Was the bill reasonable for the work done? If landlord and tenant cannot agree, the Rental Housing Tribunal decides.
The duty runs one way only where the tenant caused the damage. In that case the landlord is not obliged to repair it or to compensate the tenant for repairing it.
What a landlord must maintain
The standard is a reasonable state of repair, not a perfect one. SAnews says it takes into account the age and character of the property and its expected period of habitability. A 1970s cottage is not held to the standard of a new apartment.
The landlord must also:
- Provide the premises in a reasonable state of cleanliness at the start.
- Comply with applicable building, health and safety requirements.
- Provide adequate means of collecting and storing water where there is no reticulated supply.
- Take reasonable steps to stop other tenants interfering with the tenant's peace, comfort or privacy.
A landlord may not cut or interfere with gas, electricity, water or other services. The exception is where interference is necessary to prevent danger or to allow maintenance or repairs. Switching off the water to replace a burst pipe is allowed. Switching it off to force a tenant out is not.
What the tenant owes in return
The tenant's duty that matters most here is notice. SAnews lists it among the tenant's responsibilities: notify the landlord as soon as possible of damage or the need for repairs.
That cuts both ways. A tenant who reported a leaking geyser in writing three weeks ago, and heard nothing, is in a strong position when the geyser finally bursts. A tenant who called a plumber without trying to reach the landlord is in a weaker one. Tenants must also keep the premises reasonably clean and hand them back as they found them, allowing for fair wear and tear.
What the Rental Housing Tribunal can order
More than most landlords assume. Tribunals sit in all nine provinces and charge neither side a fee. Lack of maintenance and repairs is on the list of unfair practices they hear.
A complaint goes through a preliminary investigation, then mediation. If mediation fails, the Tribunal holds a hearing and makes a binding ruling. SAnews says Tribunal rulings carry the same force as a Magistrates' Court judgment, and an aggrieved party can ask the Tribunal for help enforcing one through that court.
The Tribunal can issue interdicts requiring a landlord or tenant to comply with the Act, and it can impose fines. It cannot grant eviction orders. A landlord who stops maintaining the property to push a tenant out will not get an eviction from the Tribunal, and may well get an order to repair.
Where landlords usually lose the argument
The pattern is nearly always the same. The tenant reports a problem. The landlord does not have a contractor who can be on site that week. The tenant waits, then gets their own plumber, who charges an after-hours rate and does a repair the landlord would not have specified.
The geyser is the classic case. A burst geyser is urgent by any standard, and the repair carries its own compliance traps, as we set out in the geyser drip tray requirement, and who pays without one. A plumber chosen in a hurry by a tenant is not chosen for the paperwork.
The fix is not a better lease clause. It is a contractor the landlord already trusts, who answers the phone. The same logic applies to a body corporate, as we covered in maintenance contractors for bodies corporate.
Arabella Infrastructure Solutions is a Johannesburg-based building maintenance and construction company, open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, that gets vetted trades to a landlord's rental quickly. A landlord whose contractor gets there first never receives the tenant's invoice. The client page sets out how that works.
On Monday
List every rental unit you own or manage, and next to each write the name and number of the plumber and electrician you would call tonight. Any blank is the unit most likely to produce a tenant's invoice. Then write to each tenant with one line: report repairs to this number, in writing.
