Changes to RTA announced

Associate Minister of Housing (Public Housing) Kris Faafoi says that both renters and landlords will benefit from the suite of practical changes to the Residential Tenancies Act.

The changes sit alongside the Government’s previous reforms to renting, including the banning of letting fees and the Healthy Homes Guarantee.

The key changes include:

• Limit rent increases to once every 12 months and banning the solicitation of rental bids by landlords.
• Improve tenant’s security by removing a landlord’s right to use no cause terminations to end a periodic tenancy agreement.
• Making rental properties safer and more liveable by letting tenants add minor fittings such as brackets to secure furniture against earthquake risk, to baby proof the property, install visual fire alarms and doorbells, and hang pictures.
• Improve compliance with the law by increasing financial penalties and introducing new tools to take direct action against parties who are not meeting their obligations.