A proposed addition to the Residential Tenancies Act (RTA) will ban certain landlords from managing their own tenancies and mandate the engagement of a licensed residential property manager by a private landlord for subsequent tenancies, where the landlord has been involved in two or more unlawful activities within a span of five years, as evidenced in cases before the tribunal or the District Court.
Experts within the industry have voiced concerns over the nature of this modification, deeming it more punitive than effective. An alternative would be two incidents within a twelve-month period rather than over the course of five years. This adjustment takes into account that some landlords might unintentionally breach regulations twice in a five-year timeframe, often without deliberate wrongdoing, but rather due to lapses in fulfilling their landlord responsibilities.
It's worth noting that existing penalties of up to $6,000 are already in place to address landlord misconduct and inappropriate behaviour. The proposed change, however, aims to specifically address and rectify instances of recurrent problematic conduct among landlords.
A point of consideration is the exemption provided in the proposed clause for Kainga Ora and registered community housing providers. This exemption has raised disappointment among observers, given Kainga Ora's noted history of tenant management issues within their complexes and the impact on nearby homeowners. The exemption seemingly contradicts the intent of the proposed change, leading to questions about the rationale behind exempting government entities from compliance with these regulations.
Historically, the original Residential Tenancies Act of 1986 incorporated Housing New Zealand under its provisions. Over time, amendments to the RTA have consistently exempted Kainga Ora from its purview. This has led to discussions surrounding the unequal treatment of government agencies compared to the public in terms of adhering to established regulations.
The broader concern centres around the pattern of the government creating alterations to existing laws while simultaneously excluding its own departments from the resulting regulations.
