The Chairperson of the Social Services and Community Committee, Gareth Hughes, is calling for public submissions on the Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill, which was referred to the committee on 20 February 2020.

The Residential Tenancies Act 1986 has been law for more than 30 years. The bill would make a range of changes to modernise the Act so it’s better suited to today’s renting environment. It aims to balance the rights and obligations of tenants and landlords.

Changes the bill would make include:

· increasing security of tenure for tenants who are meeting their obligations

o landlords would need to have specific, justified reasons for ending a periodic tenancy

o fixed-term tenancies would become periodic when they expired unless both parties agreed otherwise or certain conditions applied

· improving compliance with the law by increasing financial penalties and giving the regulator more power to take action when parties don’t meet their obligations

· clarifying the rules about minor changes to premises, such as fitting earthquake proofing

· requiring landlords to facilitate the installation of ultra-fast broadband, subject to specific triggers and exemptions

· prohibiting the solicitation of rental bids by landlords and limiting rent increases to once every 12 months

· improving tenants’ ability to assign their tenancy when that is reasonable

· supporting tenants’ ability to assert their legal rights.

Tell the Social Services and Community Committee what you think

Make a submission on the bill by midnight on 25 March 2020.

For more details about the bill:

· Read the full content of the bill

· What’s been said in Parliament about the bill?

· Follow the committee’s Facebook page for updates
 

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