Landlords, are you aware that on 11 February 2021, changes to the Residential Tenants Amendment Acts 2020 came into force?
Since then, many changes have been made which we all should be aware of. There are too many to write in this article but do go to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development website hud.govt.nz which will give you all the information you require. You will need it! These law changes will certainly change the way we rent our properties. Here are some of them…
The 90-day notice allowing the landlords to terminate a tenancy without cause will no longer apply.
New termination grounds will be available to landlords under a periodic tenancy, and timeframes have changed. A tenant giving notice on a periodic tenancy has to give 28 days’ notice to leave the property.
As for security of rental tenure—this has massive changes. It’s 63 days if the owner or a member of the owner’s family requires the property; 90 days only if property is to be sold, for extensive renovations, or if the property is to be demolished or converted to commercial premises.
And there is so much more! When writing up of tenancy agreements, we must have written proof of Healthy Home Standards. The premises must be compliant and proof of this must be included with the agreement and signed by the landlord.
Landlords and property managers will have to be knowledgeable about all of these changes. Large fines are in place, and the tenancy tribunal can hear cases and make awards up to $100,000 (it was previously$ 50,000).
There is so much to do, reading the new amendments will take some time and it’s not my favourite reading matter but it must be done. I shall go onto the deck and sit in the sun with a white wine to make it more palatable!
