New regulations good for tenants

19 April 2016

New regulations good for tenants

The NZ Property Investors' Federation (NZPIF) is pleased that newly announced regulations on minimum standards will improve tenants wellbeing and safety without large increases in rental prices.

The NZPIF has always supported insulation in rental properties but is pleased that Government has rejected calls for existing insulation to be upgraded to current standards.

"The increased efficiency between the 1978 and present standards is very minimal" says NZPIF Executive Officer Andrew King, "however the cost is almost the same as completely installing new insulation. I can't see tenants appreciating large rent increases for what is likely to be an unnoticeable difference in insulation quality".

It was surprising that the penalty for landlords issuing a retaliatory notice to tenants, which was going to be increased to $2,000 is now going to be increased to $4,000.

In addition, the $3,000 penalty for not complying with the new insulation and smoke alarm rules has been increased to $4,000.

"The size of these penalties reinforces that anyone managing a rental property needs to know what they are doing" says King. "If you manage a rental property, joining your local Property Investors' Association is an easy way to keep up-to-date and avoid making expensive mistakes. "

"If landlords are to face such strong penalties for retaliatory action, perhaps it would have been fair to apply penalties to tenants who retaliate against landlords by intentionally damaging their rental property or not paying rent".

ENDS

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