Landlord e-newsletter No.2: June 2007
Welcome to the second edition of our email newsletter for landlords. Our newsletter aims to provide useful information about all aspects of being a landlord; managing a property, relationships with tenants and rent, as well as topics of current interest.
This issue looks at some hot topics as the cold days of winter approach. We talk about keeping good records, what to do if you want to terminate a tenancy and check in with feedback you’ve given us from our landlord seminars around the country. We’ve also provided some pointers and a checklist for looking after your property through the cooler months and update you on recent government announcements about energy efficient homes. Enjoy!
Rent records
Like all business transactions, keeping proper records for managing your rental income enables you to easily find information in the future. Also, should any discrepancies or disagreements occur relating to a tenancy, having full documentation will help settle things more quickly.
Many landlords rely on bank statements alone for managing their rental income, but it pays to remember that if you attend mediation or adjudication hearings, officers will not accept a bank statement as the only source of evidence in any rental dispute. (The IRD also requires record-keeping for rental properties. Visit the IRD 
to read more or to download their pdf guide to rental income).
The Residential Tenancies Act states that landlords must keep “proper business records” which show all payments of rent and bond. The Department of Building and Housing provides rent payment sheets which include columns showing rent due, date due, rent paid and an accumulated balance for each due date. These can be downloaded for free from the department’s website in Word, Excel or .pdf formats.
As well as helping you to keep track of your rental income, remember that your tenant has the right to request a copy of your rent payment schedule in writing at any time and you have a duty to supply one.
Rent Records – rent arrears
Rent arrears is something that landlords may encounter as part of managing their tenancy. An up-to-date rent payment schedule is a useful document to have on hand to show your tenant should you need to meet to discuss rent arrears. It serves as a reference point for both of you. Landlords can sometimes manage an arrears situation more positively, by acknowledging the history of payments made as shown in the schedule. This can be a helpful starting point to discuss payment of arrears.
When negotiating and agreeing on a payment of arrears, landlords should engage a Department mediator to seal the terms of the arrears agreement. An unsealed agreement remains unenforceable and this could be problematic for landlords who have to pursue the arrears payments as well as current rental due. Find out more about mediation »
Terminating a tenancy
There are many situations where landlords terminate tenancies. When terminating a tenancy, notice must be given in writing. When you write a notice it must include the:
- premise to which it relates
- date the tenancy ends
- signature of the person giving the notice
The two most common types of notice include:
- wanting to reoccupy the property
- selling the property with vacant possession.
If a tenant thinks that their landlord was motivated to issue the notice because the tenant was exercising their rights (for example they had requested repairs), then the Tribunal may order that the notice has no effect, unless the landlord can provide reasons for ending the tenancy.
Landlords should be very clear about the type of notice they are using when seeking to terminate a tenancy and ensure that the process they are following is not one borne out of retaliation against the tenant.
To read more information about ending a tenancy, including what to do if a tenant abandons a property, or in the case of abandoned goods, read more information in the ending a tenancy section of the website Or, if you’d like to ask a specific question about ending a tenancy, give one of our friendly services centre staff a call.
Has your house got the winter blues?
As the days start growing darker and wintry weather approaches, it’s a great time for landlords to cast an eye over their property with a view to general upkeep and maintenance.
During winter months, our staff notice a sharp increase in tenants seeking advice about living conditions. This includes concerns about:
- mildew and condensation
- heating-related situations, including chimney maintenance
- flooding or heating matters
- rodent infestations
- weathertightness*
The following is a helpful list you can use to carry out a check of your property. In between tenancies is a good chance to go through your property and review it. If in doubt, ask yourself how you would feel living there with your friends or family!
Take an honest look over your property and consider:
Condensation
- Is the ducting for dryers in any laundry area adequate? Hot air emitted internally will promote condensation problems. Is there any covered outdoor area that enables a tenant to allow some washing to be dried on a clothes horse rather than dried inside?
Damp
- If dampness is present, does the house need under floor sealing with building paper or polythene?
- Are any of your tenants sleeping on a floor mattress? These make damp areas on the floor. It is also not ideal for the health of your tenants.
Bathroom and kitchen ventilation
- These are high use areas that promote mould damage. Consider any extractor fans or safety catches on windows that allow them to remain open.
Insulation
- When was the last time you inspected under the roof and assessed the top of the ceiling and the state of any insulation?
Heating
- What type of heating is there? You could consider installing a flued gas heater, which would reduce water by 1 litre per kg of gas consumed from unflued gas heaters (thereby reducing condensation and damp).
Water Use
- Do your gutters, down pipes and drains need repairs or cleaning?
- Do any outside taps drip?
- Does your shower curtain sit inside the bath unit to prevent overflow effectively or do you need to modify it?
- If you have aluminium joinery, check the drip holes are clear. Some older joinery does not have drip holes
General
- Are the inside linings of your cupboards, wardrobes and closets dry?
- Are the air vents in the foundation areas of your house clear?
- Are the under-house pipes in good condition?
- Do the curtains have adequate thermal backings?
- Do any trees or shrubs need pruning to reduce dampness or enable greater light and sun?
*Weathertight – alright?
Weathertightness is the term used to describe the resistance of a building to the weather. Weathertightness is not necessarily waterproofing, but rather ensuring against undue dampness inside buildings and damage to building elements as a result of this moisture.
Since the mid-1990s, a considerable number of houses have been built using methods that won’t withstand the weather conditions in New Zealand and therefore will not comply with the New Zealand Building Code. When it rains, some houses are leaking because of problems involving design and installation of materials. In some cases the materials themselves have been used inappropriately.
Once water or moisture gets behind certain cladding type, and if there is no drainage and ventilation between the cladding and the framework, the water becomes trapped and the potential for fungal growth and rotting rapidly increases. To read more about building, buying, renovating and maintaining houses with an eye to weathertightness, visit the ConsumerBuild website .
Tenancy Tribunal Decisions Online
You may already be aware that the Ministry of Justice is currently working together with the Department of Building and Housing on a new website. The website will publish orders from the Tenancy Tribunal and allow searches to be done under a Tribunal application number, a name or an address.
Tenancy Tribunal decisions are currently available to the public, via the District Court, but by improving access to the information, both agencies hope that more people will be able to access the information and make better informed decisions before they enter into any tenancy arrangement.
The site is due to go live later in the year. We’ll keep you updated in this newsletter as things progress. Don’t forget that there’s a range of online tools available to you, including Tenancy Tribunal applications online and market rent information.
Energy efficient homes – makes good cents
The Government’s announcements last month to introduce measures to improve the energy efficiency of New Zealand homes and workplaces will benefit landlords and tenants alike.
These measures will:
- require better insulation in new homes (including window double glazing)
- make it easier and cheaper to install solar water heating systems
- improve lighting efficiency in commercial buildings.
Public consultation is also open on two further proposals to require hot water systems in new homes and heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems in new commercial buildings to be more energy efficient.
These measures could change how you build new flats and may prompt you to upgrade existing ones.
For existing flats, you could consider installing a solar water heating system. It will now be cheaper and easier to do this. While there is still a cost involved, potential tenants will likely consider such a system a huge draw card, as it means their power bills will be lower.
When building a new house for lease, you will need to think about the increased insulation requirements. Better insulation will make the house a warmer, healthier place for tenants to live in, and lessen their power bills. Changes to insulation requirements come into effect for all new homes built, or major extensions undertaken, in the South Island and the North Island’s Central Plateau from November this year. They take effect in the rest of the North Island up to Auckland from July 2008, and for Auckland and further north from October 2008.
As well as these measures, the proposal to make hot water systems in new homes more energy efficient would also lower power bills through energy savings, and would limit damage to the environment. Submissions on the proposal are due by 29 June 2007.
To find out more about any of these new measures/proposals or to download a consultation document, go to www.dbh.govt.nz/energy-efficiency.
Landlord Seminars – thanks for your feedback
In our last newsletter we talked about our new landlord seminars that have been on offer around the country. The seminars have had great attendance and feedback from landlords attending has been positive, with landlords especially positive about the practical content and interactive style of the seminars.
Twenty five landlord seminars are delivered throughout New Zealand each year aimed at helping landlords manage their tenancies better by showing them tools they can use to help select tenants, establish and maintain positive relationships and then how to manage rent arrears should the need arise. More seminars are planned for the second half of 2007 so keep an eye on our website to see when the next one is in your area.
That’s all for this issue, but remember, if you have an idea or burning issue you’d like to see covered in our next newsletter, we welcome all suggestions.
Email us at info@dbh.govt.nz
For online services, forms and information about being a Landlord, visit our website,
www.dbh.govt.nz. To ask a question about renting law or to get advice about a problem, call us on 0800 TENANCY (0800 83 62 62)
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