NZ - "one of the least tenant-friendly regimes in the developed world"

[eri]

one man's compassion

is another's abuse

spare the rod

and spoil the child

is not an old saying for nothing

anyone who's ever trained anything

will know that you give rewards for good actions

and penalties for poor

a social welfare system that does the exact opposite

can not be sustained for long

the greens, rightly, go on about the sustainability of the environment

but seem blind to the sustainability of the welfare system

[DazRaz]

I feel sorry for our younger generation. Now they come out of University with very large debts. When they can finally pay that off, they may manage to save of a deposit for a house - unlikely.

Not necessarily. I have one son doing his Masters who had no student debt and has a few K invested. Last year had a 6 week holiday in Europe. All self funded - no parental help or government assistance. It can be done.

[eri]

something 'unfair' about that

can you give me more details

so i can can attack you about it?

[Keys]

Word for word.

An email I received this evening:

PLEASE spare me 1 minute of your time! My children and I cannot afford to rent you’re lovely home (as much as we would love too!) In order for us to get on the wait list for a Housing New Zealand rental we require WRITTEN PROOF OF REJECTION! All I require is a return rejection email/message on your property! We would really appreciate your help as our current rental is due for demolition after Xmas! Thank you so very much for your time and good luck for your perfect tenant search!

Not sure if they're extracting the urine or not. However, some here may like to comment on the thoughts that this person put into words.

Seems to me, the word entitlement springs to mind.

Edited to add:

Thought about it a bit. Sent this reply:

Hi there, we would be pleased for you to call in to view this property. An application form, should you choose to apply, can be downloaded from our web site.

Please let us know a range of dates you are available to view.

Should you be successful with your application then we can discuss matters further. Please supply valid photographic identification and a photo of yourself with your application.

[Winston001]

I feel sorry for our younger generation. Now they come out of University with very large debts. When they can finally pay that off, they may manage to save of a deposit for a house - unlikely. And then the chances of them getting a pension is almost zero. No wonder so many of the younger generation are giving up. They will be as well off on the dole living in a state house. Does seem that the rich are getting richer, and the middle classes getting poorer. I would say that the poor are about the same. How to solve it??? No idea

With respect, you are misled. There are many, in fact most towns and cities within New Zealand where a young couple can buy a home and prosper. In beautiful surroundings.

[jimO]

With respect, you are misled. There are many, in fact most towns and cities within New Zealand where a young couple can buy a home and prosper. In beautiful surroundings.

you must be talking about places outside auckland, lets face it life outside auckland is a myth it doesnt exist, at least to people who live in auckland, i recently bought a 4 bed brick house on a large flat section close to schools, shops, buses etc for 210k, it needed a bit of a tidy up but was perfectly liveable, what would 210 get you in auckland

[Winston001]

Green Island or Mosgiel?

[Wayne]

you must be talking about places outside auckland, lets face it life outside auckland is a myth it doesnt exist, at least to people who live in auckland, i recently bought a 4 bed brick house on a large flat section close to schools, shops, buses etc for 210k, it needed a bit of a tidy up but was perfectly liveable, what would 210 get you in auckland

Here, here.
I do get tired of hearing about the 'Auckland' problem.
I read the Herald so can't really expect much else.
It must be annoying for people further south (or north) to keep hearing about it.

[artemis]

Here, here. I do get tired of hearing about the 'Auckland' problem. I read the Herald so can't really expect much else. It must be annoying for people further south (or north) to keep hearing about it.

Yeah, pretty much over it. Especially the bit about how property buyers and owners in the rest of the country are disadvantaged because of the 'Auckland problem'. I get particularly grumpy about the folk showcased in the (many) poorly reported Herald articles as unable to buy a place.

[Maccachic]

Green Island or Mosgiel?

Could be Waikari / Halfway Bush nice area close to town 10mins plus loads of shops and schools. Plus numerous other areas. Mosgiel a nice area as well and still only 15-20mins to town - shorter than most people drive to work in some towns.

[klauster]

I read lots of emotion - happy renters don’t post here and Landlords have reasons when asking questions or making comments. Everybody in this forum has been burned at some stage.

Why would you e.g. compare the housing culture in UK (based on monarchy, the “have” and the “not-have”, constrained the supply of land for development) with the liberal systems in Austria, Germany, Switzerland?

And the OZ and NZ have imported the same problems from UK. The German’s solutions are technical not entirely political. Their building code provides housing for a 150 year build-to-tear down cycle with scheduled upgrades. In NZ I purchased a new built in 2009, battled for 4 years with the builder and finally I gave up for fixing a leaky roof myself (replaced roof screws without rubber seals).

The situation with the RTA is similar that offers everything for short or long-term tenancies, but what is it worth if you can’t enforce legal rights. Even if a landlord gets an order, are civil claims enforceable?

NZ housing culture is focused on land ownership (feudal monarchy) liberal thinking that renting makes sense at some stage in life, saving for a purpose (as all landlords do) should be mandatory, and of course taking responsibilities. I feel pity for all the GenY who have to pay off a student loan, hire purchase for the smatphone etc. but maybe a house is their inheritance?

Capital gains bubbles are man-made bubbles based on failing credit policies. It sounds so good owning a house build in the 40s for less than 10k that is now worth a half million. People feel suddenly rich about something that is still a small and cold bungalow. Banks like lending on high market value, too = higher mortgage =more profit.

Housing is nowhere cheap, and that won’t change. But in liberal countries occupants pay for the amenities of housing and policies should keep housing affordable for all levels of the society as it is in Germany (social housing = government-owned housing, council-owned housing, company-owned housing for employees, co-op housing (you pay for an entitlement to occupy) and the private housing market). The diversity influences house prices and landlords and renters work together to meet housing standards, which don’t distinguish between homeowners and renters. Does the war between renters and landlords in NZ make really sense?

[artemis]

This issue is in the news again - Push on for better deal for renters.

This news item is based on the Building and Housing Briefing for Incoming Ministers, which includes two suggestions to improve the rental market, as follows:

As home ownership rates decline internationally, many households are likely to spend longer periods in the rental market. New Zealand’s rental market has a number of characteristics that add to pressures to move from rentals to home ownership at an early stage. Key areas for improvement include:
* developing options to provide greater security of rental tenure nationally
* trialling ways of improving the quality of rental housing in areas where supply is adequate, with a view to improving health outcomes in particular.

Possible first steps are redacted. I would not like to see a one size fits all approach to rental security. In Auckland house prices and various pressures to buy will be leading to tenancy terminations upon sale, or rent increases by new or existing owners but this is unlikely to be to the same extent elsewhere. Maybe Christchurch, though that is a special case and should settle over time. Would like to see exactly what the extent of the 'problem' is.

The second item is interesting. If a rental is not in great condition, and the supply of housing is adequate, why wouldn't the tenants move? With adequate supply, surely the market will deal to landlords who should upgrade but don't.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/politics/news/article.cfm?c_id=280&objectid=11358876

[Glenn]

I chuckle when I hear self proclaimed experts berate our RTA. Our RTA was copied straight out of the Australian NSW legislation. Theirs in turn was copied for the Republic of Ireland. It is meaningless comparing us with places like Holland. Our housing laws might have started with the English system but are very different today. It is interesting that a number of my Indian tenants say their housing laws are very similar. Goodness how many brownie points would those well paid intellectuals get if they compared us with Mumbai.

[jimO]

Green Island or Mosgiel?

if your talking about mine its Tainuai, 2 minute walk to Tahuna intermediate, 10 minute walk to Bayfield highschool

[speights boy]

Andrew Bruce: Long term landlords want long term tenants

From my experience in renting properties, and having canvassed this matter with many other landlord's within the Auckland Property Investors Association, the common response I receive is the vast majority of our members prefer longer term (fixed) tenancies, however tenants prefer the flexibility of a shorter term (periodic) tenancy.

I hasten to add this is not always the case, and certainly I've found with renting to either families or more executive style properties (i.e. $700p.w. and above) fixed term tenancies are regularly sought.

As a long term landlord I always seek long term tenancies.

Andrew Bruce is the President of Auckland Property Investors Association.
www.nzherald.co.nz/personal-finance/news/article.cfm?c_id=12&objectid=11359945