New Rental Legislation just past in Parliament

Government Delivers On Rental Reforms Promise

Thursday, 6 August 2020, 5:17 am
Press Release: New Zealand Government

The Government has delivered on its promise to New Zealanders to modernise tenancy laws with the passing of the Residential Tenancies Amendment (RTA) Bill 2020 today, says Associate Minister of Housing (Public Housing), Kris Faafoi.

“The Residential Tenancies Act 1986 was out-dated and the reforms in the RTA modernise our rental laws and align them with present-day realities for the around 600,000 households which rent in New Zealand,” Kris Faafoi said.

“More Kiwis than ever are renting now, including families with young children, as well as older people, and it’s important that there are appropriate protections in place for them.

“The Government considers that every New Zealander should have a safe, warm, dry home to call their own – including if they are renting. “Renters should be able to put down roots in their community and not face the stress of continually having to find a new home,” Kris Faafoi said. Mr Faafoi said the reforms also come at a time when a lot of New Zealanders, including tenants, face financial challenges due to the impacts of COVID-19. The reforms focus on helping tenants who meet their obligations to be able to stay in their homes by removing “no cause” 90-day termination notices, and replacing them with a comprehensive list of specified, justified reasons that a landlord can use to end a tenancy.

Other changes includ