Quick Answer
N.C. Gen. Stat. § 42-42 sets the repair duties of a residential landlord. You comply with building and housing codes, keep the premises fit and habitable, keep the electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems and supplied appliances in good working order, and keep common areas safe. Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms must be repaired or replaced within 15 days of written notice. Statute text last checked October 22, 2026.
Key Takeaways
- The duty is statutory. A tenant’s acceptance of poor conditions does not release you from § 42-42.
- Systems need prompt repair. Electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and supplied appliances are listed.
- Alarms have a 15-day rule. Repair or replace a smoke or carbon monoxide alarm within 15 days of written notice.
- Alarms must work at move-in. Check them at the start of each tenancy.
- Written notice is the normal trigger. Tenants give written notice of needed repairs, except in emergencies.
1. Fit and Habitable Premises
The statute requires you to make repairs and do whatever is necessary to keep the premises in a fit and habitable condition. The duty covers the unit and the common areas the tenant uses. Keep a dated log that records the request, the date you inspected, the work ordered, and the date it was finished.
2. Systems and Appliances
You keep the electrical, plumbing, sanitary, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems, and supplied appliances, in good and safe working order, and you make repairs promptly. A repair request that comes in writing starts a clear record. For an emergency, such as a loss of heat in winter, act first and record the facts afterward.
3. Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarms
Provide operable smoke alarms that meet the listing standards and are properly installed. Repair or replace an alarm within 15 days of written notice, and make sure alarms work at the start of each tenancy. At least one operable carbon monoxide alarm per rental unit per level is required in units that have fossil-fuel heaters, appliances, or fireplaces, or an attached garage. Since 2012, new or replacement smoke alarms generally must be tamper-resistant units with a 10-year lithium battery, with exceptions for some hardwired or combined units.
4. Conditions That Need Repair Within a Reasonable Time
The statute lists imminently dangerous conditions that you repair within a reasonable time after you learn of them. They include unsafe wiring, flooring, steps, ceilings, roofs, chimneys, or flues, lack of potable water, lack of operable locks on exterior doors, broken or unlocked ground-level windows, lack of working heat (65°F when it is 20°F outside, from November through March), lack of a working toilet, bathtub, or shower, and standing water, sewage, or flooding that contributes to mosquitoes or mold. You may recover the reasonable cost of repairs for damage the tenant caused.
5. Water Quality Notice
If you charge for water or sewer service and you know the water exceeds a state maximum contaminant level, the statute requires you to give notice to the tenants.
6. A Checklist
- Accept repair requests in writing and date them.
- Photograph the condition before and after the work.
- Test every smoke and carbon monoxide alarm before each move-in.
- Schedule alarm repairs inside the 15-day window.
- Keep contractor invoices with the log entry.
7. What This Guide Does Not Cover
This guide covers the landlord duties in G.S. 42-42. It does not cover tenant remedies in detail, local housing codes, retaliation, or rent withholding. A governmental impediment to repair that lasts up to six months is an exception in the statute, and its details are outside this guide. It states the statute and does not predict how a court will rule.
8. Questions Owners Ask
Can the lease shift my repair duties to the tenant? Not by the lease alone. The statute says a tenant’s acceptance of substandard conditions does not release you, though a separate written contract for specified work, supported by other consideration, is allowed.
Does the tenant have to put repair requests in writing? Section 42-42 has tenants give written notice of needed repairs, except in emergencies.
Who pays when the tenant damaged something? You may recover the reasonable cost of repairs for damage the tenant caused.