Whilst it may still seem a long way away the deadline for all rental properties in NZ to be insulated of 1st July 2019 is creeping up fast and the suppliers of insulation products, and the installers, are warning that if you leave it too late there will be a shortage of both product and labour.
Another thing to consider is that by now we are required to be providing a very thorough statement of insulation, or there are potential consequences.
I have heard of nine recent cases where landlords have been fined by the Tenancy Tribunal, between $100 and $500 in exemplary damages, just for not having a correct insulation statement with their tenancy agreement. And who gets the money? You guessed it – the tenant!
What you may not realise is that the maximum fine for not meeting the new requirements from 1st July 2019 could result in a fine of up to $4000, and again this money will be awarded to the tenants. Crazy – I know – but what the Government are encouraging is for tenants to dob non complying landlords in, and it will work!
So again I cannot reiterate strongly enough the importance of taking this seriously, and while it may seem a big scary exercise, remember that every landlord in NZ is having to do this, and so despite the Government saying it will not cause rents to increase, of course it will – which means next year we will be looking hard at all of the rents and they will be increasing to assist in covering some of the extra costs.
If you want to know more just give me a call.
We knew it was coming, and we were hoping for some clarity sooner rather than later, but as we have come to expect from our Governments, they have pushed it through with limited time to get all the ducks in a row and with limited information. I guess on the … Read more
You may be aware that the Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill had its Second Reading before Parliament last week. These long-discussed changes to the RTA (Residential Tenancies Act), (reinstatement of ‘no cause’ terminations, changes in notice periods, pet bonds, etc) are well and truly coming and we should know precisely … Read more