Housing · Warranty of habitability
Warranty of Habitability in Oregon
What a landlord in Oregon must keep livable, and your remedy when they do not: whether you can withhold or escrow rent, or must use another route. This is the landlord duty behind the repair-and-deduct remedy. Cited to the statute.
What the warranty of habitability covers in Oregon
What the landlord must maintain, whether you can withhold or escrow rent, and the limits on the remedy.
| What the law says | What it means |
|---|---|
| Landlord must maintain a habitable unit | ORS 90.320 says the landlord shall at all times during the tenancy maintain the dwelling unit in a habitable condition. A unit is unhabitable if it substantially lacks any feature on the statutory list, so the tenant’s case is framed around what is missing. |
| The statutory list of features | The list includes effective waterproofing and weather protection, plumbing in good working order, an approved water supply providing safe drinking water, adequate heating facilities, safe electrical wiring, clean and pest-free grounds, adequate garbage receptacles, floors and stairways in good repair, working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, working locks, and any ventilating or air conditioning kept in good repair if supplied. |
| A cooling duty for new buildings | For a dwelling unit in a building whose construction permits were issued on or after April 1, 2024, ORS 90.320 requires adequate cooling facilities that cool at least one room, not counting a bathroom. Compliance may be a central system, a heat pump, or a portable air conditioner the landlord provides, so the duty is far less onerous than a blanket requirement to install central air. |
| Where it does not apply | What it means |
|---|---|
| Older buildings get no cooling duty | The cooling requirement turns on the building permit date, not the lease date. A renter in a building permitted before April 1, 2024 gets nothing from it, so the duty is prospective and will take decades to reach most of the housing stock. |
| Heating facilities, not a heat supply | ORS 90.320 requires adequate heating facilities that were code-compliant when installed and are kept in good working order. It requires the equipment to exist and work rather than setting a temperature the landlord must deliver. |
| Agreed tenant repairs | The parties may agree in writing that the tenant will do specified repairs, but only in good faith, only if it does not evade the landlord’s obligations or diminish duties to other tenants, and only if the terms are clearly disclosed. Oregon uniquely requires the consideration for that agreement to be specifically stated, not merely to exist. |
What you can do right now
Concrete, neutral steps when a rental in Oregon is not being kept livable. This is legal information, not legal advice.
- Give written notice of the condition
Describe each problem in writing, date it, and keep a copy. Written notice to the landlord and a reasonable chance to fix the condition are the starting point for Oregon’s habitability remedies.
- Document everything
Take photos or video, save messages with the landlord, and keep any inspection reports. If the dispute goes to court, this record shows the unit substantially lacked a listed feature.
- Check the cooling trigger
If your complaint is about heat, find out when the building’s construction permits were issued. The cooling duty in ORS 90.320 applies only to buildings permitted on or after April 1, 2024, and only to one room.
- Get Oregon tenant help
For advice on notice, remedies, and how to enforce ORS 90.320, Oregon Law Help and a local legal-aid office can walk you through the options before you act.
Withholding rent the wrong way can risk eviction, so a legal aid office can confirm the exact notice and escrow steps before you stop paying.
→ Oregon Law Help (Housing)This is general legal information, not legal advice. The notice, the escrow account, and what counts as uninhabitable all matter, so confirm your situation against the statute before withholding rent.
What renters in Oregon get wrong about habitability
Oregon writes its warranty of habitability as a list of things a unit must not "substantially lack," from weatherproofing and plumbing to safe drinking water, adequate heating facilities, safe wiring, working alarms, and working locks. What sets Oregon apart from every other state is cooling. ORS 90.320 requires the landlord to provide adequate cooling facilities, the only affirmative duty to supply cooling in the country. The catch is in the fine print. The duty applies only to a dwelling unit in a building whose construction permits were issued on or after April 1, 2024, so it is prospective and a renter in an older building gets nothing from it. It covers only one room of the unit, not the whole home, and it can be satisfied with a portable air conditioner the landlord provides rather than central air. Oregon legislated a place to survive a heatwave, not a cool home. Heat is handled in the older way: the landlord must keep adequate heating facilities working but the statute sets no temperature. Because the text read here carries a 2023 edition label, the exact wording should be confirmed against the current official Oregon edition before relying on a specific phrase.
Common questions
Does Oregon have a warranty of habitability?
Yes. ORS 90.320 requires a landlord to keep a dwelling unit habitable at all times. A unit is unhabitable if it substantially lacks listed features such as weatherproofing, plumbing, safe drinking water, adequate heating facilities, and safe electrical wiring.
Does my Oregon landlord have to provide air conditioning?
Only in newer buildings. ORS 90.320 requires adequate cooling for one room in a dwelling unit whose building permits were issued on or after April 1, 2024. A portable air conditioner the landlord provides can satisfy it. Older buildings carry no cooling duty.
Does the Oregon cooling rule cover my apartment?
It depends on when the building was permitted, not when you signed the lease. If construction permits were issued on or after April 1, 2024, the landlord must provide cooling for at least one room. If the building is older, the rule does not reach it.
Does my Oregon landlord have to supply heat?
The statute requires adequate heating facilities that were code-compliant when installed and are kept in good working order. It requires the heating equipment to exist and work rather than setting a specific temperature the landlord must deliver.
Not legal advicePlainStatute provides plain-language summaries of public law for general information only. This is not legal advice. Statutes change; always confirm current requirements with the official source linked above before acting.