Government legislation drives rents and higher house sales

Of 700 landlords answering a recent Kantar survey commissioned by the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Ministry, 47% had raised rents by more than $20 a week to the end of November.

Of those landlords who had not raised rent in the past six months, 23% were considering increasing rent in the next three months.

Key reasons for 41% of landlords considering a rent increase include a desire to cover increased costs, for 51% it is matching market rates, and for 57% it is raising rents after a year of no increases.

Two out of five, or 39%, are specifically looking to cover costs resulting from regulatory changes.