Government to make changes to renting laws

A public meeting held by Angie Warren-Clark will be held in Papamoa on October 8.

Bay of Plenty Labour MP Angie Warren-Clark is holding a public meeting in Papamoa to discuss the new proposed renting law.

On October 10 Angie will hold the public meeting at the Papamoa Community Centre with MP Jan Tinetti holding a public meeting in Tauranga on October 8 at the Greerton Senior Citizens Hall.

The government is making laws about renting a home fairer and more modern.

This coincides with Phil Twyford's announcement on Tuesday about the Healthy Home Standards Proposal.

'Healthy homes standards will set minimum requirements for heating, insulation, ventilation, moisture and drainage and draught stopping in residential rental properties,” says Phil.

He says the Government is committed to improving the quality of rental properties so families living in rental properties are happier and healthier.

'Renting is now a long-term reality for many Kiwi families with over one-third of New Zealanders living in a rental home. We know rental homes are more likely to be older and poorer quality than owner-occupied home,” says Phil.

Angie says that with the new proposed law changes, the government is looking to strike a better balance between providing security of tenure and allowing tenants to make their house a home, while protecting the rights and interests of landlords.

'Most landlords want to provide decent housing and act with integrity. These reforms are designed to stop exploitative behaviour by a minority of landlords,” says Angie.

'More secure tenancies and tenants who treat their house like their homes, are better for both landlords and tenants. It is certainly an ideal situation for both parties where a tenant stays for many years, treating the property like their own.”

'Like others around the country, renters in the Bay of Plenty know full well how tough and competitive the rental market is. We all have friends, family and people we have met who have had to move on from a rental because it's going on the market, or the rent has been raised and the home is now unaffordable. We have a low wage economy here which means that it's particularly hard to find an affordable home.”

'Insecure tenure can force families to continually move house, which is particularly tough on children when they have to keep changing schools. By ending no cause tenancy terminations, while ensuring landlords can still get rid of rogue tenants, and increasing the amount of notice a landlord must give tenants to terminate a tenancy, we can provides families with a stable home and secure tenure.”

'We're also consulting on limiting rent increases to once a year, banning rent bidding, and how we can better enable tenants and landlords to reach an agreement about pets and minor alternations to the home. These changes will enable tenants to make their house a home, enable families to put down roots and fully participate in their local community.”

RTA reform is just one part of the government's plan to fix the housing crisis. They are also building thousands of modest and affordable starter homes through KiwiBuild to be sold to first home buyers, building over 6,400 public houses nationally over the next four years and expanding the Housing First programme to help tackle homelessness, and increasing the amount of transitional housing places to help those in need immediately.

In the Bay of Plenty specifically, the government is building at least 275 public houses to help local families and those in need.

To have your say on these ideas go to: www.mbie.govt.nz/rta-reform.

Submissions close on October 21.

You may also like....

1 comment

Does ownership decide if a house is healthy to live in?

Posted on 09-09-2018 10:48 | By StevieB

The minister said: “Healthy homes standards will set minimum requirements for heating, insulation, ventilation, moisture and drainage and draught-stopping in residential rental properties,” If my owner-occupied home, is in similar condition to a rental house next door to me that also does not meet these 'standards' for healthy living, will I be forced to similarly make my home fit for 'healthy living', or will that 'standard' ONLY apply to homes owned by landlords? There should not be any difference on the standard test being applied as to whether a home is healthy to live in or not, if purely based on who owns it and if it is rented out. And if my owner-occupied home is similarly deemed as unhealthy to live in, will I be forced to pay to bring it up to standard or will the Government cover my costs? Why only penalise Landlords?


Leave a Comment


You must be logged in to make a comment.