Maintenance playbook
Tenant has no heat: what to do in the first hour
Updated
Heat is an essential service. Most states require a landlord to restore it within a day or two, and some cities require it within hours during heating season. Treat every no-heat text as urgent until you know otherwise.
How urgent is it?
OwnAway files a no-heat report as P1 Urgent (24-hour target) and escalates it to P0 Emergency (4-hour target, owner paged, safety instructions sent) when the report mentions freezing conditions, a gas smell, or a carbon monoxide alarm. Tell OwnAway about vulnerable occupants in the unit notes and treat any no-heat report for them as P0 yourself.
- Gas smell or CO alarm: tell the tenant to leave the unit and call the gas utility's emergency line, then 911. Do not send a handyman.
- Freezing outside: P0. Get space heaters to the unit tonight if the repair cannot happen today.
- Mild weather, furnace out: P1. Same-day or next-morning HVAC visit.
- One room cold, rest of unit fine: P2 Routine. Likely a radiator valve, a closed damper, or a thermostat placement problem.
Ask these three questions before you call anyone
- Is the thermostat set to Heat and above the room temperature, and does it have batteries? (Thermostat problems are the most common no-heat cause a tenant can fix in a minute.)
- Is it the whole unit or one room? Whole unit points to the furnace, boiler, or a tripped breaker; one room points to a radiator or vent.
- Any smell, noise, or water? A burning smell or a boiler leaking water changes who you call and how fast.
What to text
Got it — no heat. I'm arranging someone now and will confirm a time with you within the hour. If anything changes or gets worse, text me right away.
Hi — Furnace/boiler not producing heat at [address, unit]. Tenant is [name], reachable at [phone]. Can you get there today? Reply with a window and I'll confirm with the tenant.
If the repair will not happen today and it is cold, say so and say what you are doing about it: "The tech can't get there until tomorrow at 9. I'm dropping off two space heaters by 6pm tonight." Silence is what turns a maintenance request into a habitability complaint.
Who pays
The landlord, in nearly every case. Heating equipment is part of the dwelling, and the implied warranty of habitability puts it on the owner. The exceptions are narrow: the tenant let the oil tank run dry when the lease makes them responsible for fuel, or the tenant damaged the equipment. Even then, restore heat first and sort out the bill afterward.
Close the loop
- Confirm with the tenant that heat is back, in writing. A one-line text is enough.
- Note the cause and the cost against the unit. Two furnace calls in one winter is a replacement conversation, not a repair conversation.
- If the furnace is more than 15 years old, schedule a fall service before next heating season.
Questions
How long does a landlord have to fix no heat?
It depends on the state and sometimes the city, but the common range is 24 hours to a few days for essential services like heat, and shorter in cold weather. Many leases and local codes treat no heat below a set outdoor temperature as an emergency. Fix it as fast as you can and communicate while you do.
Can the tenant withhold rent or fix it themselves?
Many states allow repair-and-deduct or rent withholding after written notice and a reasonable time has passed. The fastest way to avoid that is to respond the same day and keep the tenant informed in writing.