The 2022 Smoke Alarm Legislation is Here

What does this Mean for the Real Estate Industry?

Since 1 January 2022, the new smoke alarm legislation has been in place for both residential rental properties and properties being sold in Queensland. These properties must now comply with the strict new legislative requirements that mandate interconnected photoelectric-style smoke alarms in every bedroom as well as other key areas of the property. Property managers and sales agents need to be aware of how this legislation will impact the leasing and sales processes.

Properties being leased

Rental properties must comply to the smoke alarm legislation from the first new lease or lease renewal this year. If a property still does not comply to smoke alarm requirements it will be illegal to rent out when it comes time for a lease to commence. If property managers still have properties on their rent roll that have yet to comply, it is advised to book them in for their smoke alarm upgrades now. Getting your properties booked in well in advance will help reduce the risk of being non-compliant which could cause the loss of rental income for your landlords.

For further information about Queensland legislation or to receive a 2022 upgrade quote, click here.

Properties being sold

Smoke alarms in properties being sold must meet new requirements prior to contract. If the seller fails to comply, the buyer is entitled to an adjustment at settlement equal to 0.15% of the purchase price. For example, on a property that sells for a million dollars, the adjustment would cost the seller $1,500 – which is much more than the average smoke alarm upgrade.

As the REIQ’s trusted smoke alarm partner, we recommend sales agents encourage sellers to enrol their properties for a smoke alarm upgrade at time of listing. There is currently an industry-wide wait time of two-four weeks for a 2022 smoke alarm upgrade as providers race to upgrade both rental and sales properties. To avoid a delay in the sales process, you can upgrade your property to the new requirements via our Sellers Compliance Service here. If you are concerned a property will sell especially fast, you can add on Smoke Alarms Solutions’ express service for an additional fee of $199 which guarantees a two business day turnaround.