Could new air conditioning requirement cause unintended consequences for Houston renters?

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — The City of Houston’s recently passed ordinance requiring landlords to provide air conditioning to renters won’t take effect until December.

In the meantime, Dr. Michelle Smirnova of Rice University says it’s a good thing for a city known for extreme heat and humidity.

“It’s incredibly important and transformative,” Smirnova said about the ordinance. “People need a tool to mitigate some of that heat.”

Smirnova is Director of the Center for Neighborhoods and Housing with Rice’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research.

That’s the same Kinder Institute that released a study earlier this year indicating that rising utility costs are a major reason why some Houstonians are struggling to afford household costs.

ABC13 asked Smirnova whether the costs of suddenly having an air conditioner could have unintended consequences for some cash-strapped Houston renters.

She first addressed whether or not the costs of installing a unit would ultimately be passed down to renters.

“We don’t see evidence that it is being passed down in terms of rent cost,” she said. “Dallas, Denton, and Austin have rolled this out, and they have seen no increase in rents.”

That led to a discussion on the utility costs needed to operate an air-conditioning unit.

“Having access to this is going to be a life-saving element,” she said. “Heat and water are also utilities that add costs to tenants, yet we don’t question that those things are required for something to be considered habitable.”

The Kinder Institute said data from 2024 indicates there are about 17,000 households in the city limits without air conditioning.

“The largest concentration (of those) is in lower-income neighborhoods with a high proportion of renters,” the Kinder Institute said.

Tenants who don’t have air conditioning in Houston when the ordinance goes into effect in December can call 311 to file a complaint, according to the Office of Councilwoman Alejandra Salinas.

Her chief of staff said a health inspector will come to the building to investigate such complaints.

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