Tenants not disadvantaged: APIA

Tenants like flexibility in their rental arrangements and suggestions they are left vulnerable are incorrect, the Auckland Property Investors Association says.

Thursday, July 31st 2014, 12:00AM

by The Landlord

It has responded to comments by the NZIER, in which it suggested that part of the solution to Auckland’s housing problem would be to make renting more tenant-friendly, with more security of tenure.

APIA said that was a euro-centric view. President Andrew Bruce said the NZIER had underplayed the attraction of transitionary tenures for tenants.

“Yes, tenants renting executive-style properties usually are after longer fixed-term agreements. However, for your run-of-the-mill renting, tenants like to be able to move more quickly in response to job opportunities and changing personal circumstances. It is out of touch to suggest that tenants do not value this type of flexibility.”

He said an NZIER claim that the short notice requirement in New Zealand made it too easy for landlords to terminate tenancies was incorrect.

“The Residential Tenancies Act requires landlords to give 90 days’ notice to terminate in most instances, while tenants only need to give 21 days’ notice. To me that put tenants in a more flexible, and powerful, position than their landlords.”

Although renters need landlord consent to make minor property customisations, the Residential Tenancies Act forbids that consent to be unreasonably withheld. In pointing out that some European countries made it easier for renters to alter their homes, the NZIER had failed to understand that rental properties were supplied on a different basis in New Zealand, Bruce said.

“You are simply not comparing apples with apples. The reason why minor alterations are the norm in some European countries is because many rental properties do not come with carpets or kitchen units. That is not the case here. With proper communication, you will find that most NZ landlords are amenable to work being done on the property if it means keeping a good tenant on the property for longer.”

He said APIA would reject any suggestion New Zealand tenants were vulnerable or disadvantaged.

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