Locks and window latches in a Donnybrook rental
Two of the 15 Victorian rental standards are about keeping the home secure. What Donnybrook landlords need on every entry door and outside window.
Fully licensed & accredited
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Building & Plumbing Commission -
Australian Society of Building Consultants -
Strata Community Association -
Building Dispute Practitioners Society
In short: Every external entry door needs a working lock that the renter can secure from outside with a key, and every outside window that opens needs a latch that holds it shut. A door that no longer latches fails as surely as a missing lock.
What the locks standard asks
External entry doors must be able to be secured with a functioning deadlock, or a lock that is operated with a key from outside and opened from inside without one. Screen doors are not counted as entry doors for this purpose.
When the lock is fine but the door is not
Reactive basalt clay moves the slab a little with the seasons, and in a house a few years old that is enough to pull a door out of line with its strike plate. The lock turns, but the bolt never engages, so the door cannot be secured.
Windows need latches too
Each external window that can be opened must be able to be set in a closed position with a latch. We close every one by hand and note any with a missing or broken catch, or any that will not shut fully.
Cheap fixes, but fix them first
A strike plate adjustment or a replacement latch is a small job. It still has to be done before the listing goes up, because a property that does not meet the standards cannot be advertised.
Written by our local inspection team from work carried out in Donnybrook. Licensed building practitioners.
