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The majority of New Zealanders see no merit in ending the no-cause 90-day notice, which is part of the government’s proposed tenancy law changes.
The Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) reached out to more than 2,800 landlords, property managers and tenants across the country, and found 82.1 per cent did not want the 90-day notice to end.
The majority of tenants also did not want the notice period to end, with 45.4 per cent against the change and 40.9 per cent supporting it.
“Overwhelmingly, our survey shows that New Zealanders don’t agree with the proposed change to the no-cause 90-day notice as outlined by the government in the Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill,” REINZ CEO Bindi Norwell said.
“We weren’t surprised by the fact that landlords/investors and property managers were opposed to the change as we knew this was likely to be the case from the wider discussions we’ve been having with the industry. However, what did surprise us was that tenants don’t want the law changed either, with most respondents disagreeing with the proposed change.”
Comments attached to the survey suggest tenants were concerned around issues caused by problem neighbours and are also worried that the changes could result in their rent rising, she said.
The survey also asked about the proposed changes to convert fixed-term tenancies to periodic tenancies automatically.
Nearly two-thirds of the respondents disagreed with the change.
When broken down further, 71.4 per cent of landlords/investors did not agree, but more than 60 per cent of tenants backed the proposed change.
“We weren’t at all surprised with the results around fixed-term tenancies automatically converting to periodic tenancies,” Ms Norwell said.
“Landlords want the freedom to choose who lives in their rental property, and tenants are after greater security of tenure. But there must be a better way to find the right balance than the current proposals.”
Additionally, the REINZ asked investors and landlords if they would consider selling their rental property if the 90-day notice came to an end.
Nearly half said it is likely or highly likely they would sell, while 21 per cent were not likely or definitely would not sell their property.
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