---
title: HB 725. Property; certain rental agreements; provide landlord duties
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb725
cite_as: HB 725, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb725
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb725.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb725/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71134
date: 2025-03-10
status: introduced
corpus_version: bills-2026-09-12
license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md
publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md
previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb724.md
next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb726.md
index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md
omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 129
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb725.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 725
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2025-03-04
last_action: House Second Readers
sponsors:
- Terry Cummings
- Spencer Frye
- Dale Washburn
- David Wilkerson
- Michael Smith
- Dexter Sharper
text_version: Introduced
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB725/2025
upstream_id: 1991463
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- landlord tenant law
- rental housing standards
- smoke detectors
- housing safety
- property law
---
# HB 725. Property; certain rental agreements; provide landlord duties
## Text
House Bill 725
By: Representatives Cummings of the 39th, Frye of the 122nd, Washburn of the 144th,
Wilkerson of the 38th, Smith of the 41st, and others
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Code Section 44-7-13 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
landlord's duties as to repairs and improvements, so as to provide for landlord duties
regarding certain rental agreements; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws;
and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Code Section 44-7-13 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to landlord's duties
as to repairs and improvements, is amended by revising subsection (a) as follows:
"(a) The landlord shall keep the premises in repair and shall be liable for all substantial
improvements placed upon the premises by such landlord's consent, including:
(1) The structures shall be structurally sound so as not to pose any threat to the health
and safety of the occupants and so as to protect the residents from hazards;
(2) The housing shall be accessible and capable of being utilized without unauthorized
use of other private properties. Structures shall provide alternate means of egress in case
of fire;
(3) Each resident shall be afforded adequate space and security for himself or herself and
his or her belongings. Each resident shall be provided with an acceptable place to sleep;
(4) Every room or space shall be provided with natural or mechanical ventilation.
Structures shall be free of pollutants in the air at levels that threaten the health of
residents;
(5) The water supply shall be free from contamination;
(6) Residents shall have access to sufficient sanitary facilities that are in proper operating
condition, may be used in privacy, and are adequate for personal cleanliness and the
disposal of human waste;
(7) The housing shall have adequate heating and cooling facilities in proper operating
condition;
(8) The housing shall have adequate natural or artificial illumination to permit normal
indoor activities and to support the health and safety of residents. Sufficient electrical
sources shall be provided to permit use of essential electrical appliances while assuring
safety from fire;
(9) All food preparation areas shall contain suitable space and equipment to store,
prepare, and serve food in a sanitary manner;
(10) The housing and any equipment shall be maintained in sanitary conditions;
(11) Each unit shall include at least one battery operated or hardwired smoke detector,
in proper working condition, on each occupied level of the unit. Smoke detectors shall
be located, to the extent practicable, in a hallway adjacent to a bedroom. If the unit is
occupied by hearing impaired persons, smoke detectors shall have an alarm system
designed for hearing impaired persons in each bedroom occupied by a hearing impaired
person; and
(12) The public areas of all housing shall be equipped with a sufficient number, but not
less than one for each area, of battery operated or hardwired smoke detectors. Public
areas include, but are not limited to, laundry rooms, day-care centers, hallways,
stairwells, and other common areas."
SECTION 2.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.
## Summaries written by Georgia Commons
The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary.
House Bill 725 would spell out specific health and safety standards Georgia landlords must meet in their rental units, from structural soundness to smoke detectors and clean water.
### Plain-language summary
Current Georgia law (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-13) already requires landlords to keep rental premises in repair, but it does not list detailed conditions the housing must meet. HB 725 rewrites that section to spell out a specific set of habitability standards landlords must maintain.
The bill requires rental housing to be structurally sound, accessible, free of contamination in water and air, adequately heated, cooled, lit, and ventilated, and equipped with working smoke detectors in units and common areas. It also requires sanitary facilities, food preparation space, and secure living space for each resident. The bill does not add a new enforcement mechanism or effective date beyond the standard process, and it repeals any conflicting laws.
### What it does
- Rewrites subsection (a) of the landlord repair law (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-13) to list 12 specific conditions rental housing must meet.
- Requires structures to be structurally sound and free of hazards that threaten occupants' health and safety.
- Requires working water supply, sanitary facilities, heating and cooling, and adequate lighting and ventilation in rental units.
- Requires at least one smoke detector on each occupied level of a unit, plus alarms designed for hearing impaired residents where applicable.
- Requires smoke detectors in shared spaces like laundry rooms, hallways, stairwells, and day-care centers.
- Repeals any existing state laws that conflict with these new landlord duties.
### Who it affects
Landlords who rent residential property in Georgia would face new specific maintenance duties, while tenants and other residents of rental housing would gain more detailed legal standards covering safety, sanitation, utilities, and fire protection in their homes.
### Why it matters
If enacted, tenants would have clearer legal standards to point to if their rental unit lacks working smoke detectors, clean water, adequate heat, or safe structural conditions. Landlords would need to confirm their properties meet each listed requirement to comply with the law.
### Key provisions
- Section 1 revises O.C.G.A. § 44-7-13(a) to require rental structures be structurally sound and pose no health or safety threat to occupants.
- Requires alternate means of egress in case of fire and access without unauthorized use of others' private property.
- Requires adequate personal space, sleeping accommodations, ventilation, and air free of harmful pollutants for each resident.
- Requires a contamination-free water supply and sufficient, private, sanitary facilities for waste disposal and cleanliness.
- Requires adequate heating, cooling, lighting, and safe electrical capacity for essential appliances.
- Requires sanitary food preparation space and equipment, and overall sanitary maintenance of the housing and its equipment.
- Requires working smoke detectors on each occupied level of a unit, with special alarms for hearing impaired residents, and in shared public areas.
- Section 2 repeals any state laws that conflict with the new requirements.
## Status
- Status: Introduced (2025-03-04)
- Last action: House Second Readers (2025-03-10)
- Sponsors: Terry Cummings, Spencer Frye, Dale Washburn, David Wilkerson, Michael Smith, Dexter Sharper
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71134
> The history, votes, and amendments (129 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb725.md?full=1