Great News for Landlords!
10 February 2017
GREAT NEWS FOR LANDLORDS!
This is a news article published on 9/02/17 in the Manawatu Standard:
FOXTON LANDLORD APPEALS NEW TENANCY RULES AND WINS by Catherine Harris
The Foxton house was so badly soiled that the carpets had to be replaced.
A manawatu landlord has won what could be a precedent-setting case against his tenant who was let off a big bill for damaging his property.
David Russ of Tekoa Trust took his case to court after the Tenancy Tribunal ruled last year that his tenant, Amanda Stewart, was not liable for damage caused by her dogs urinating throughout the Foxton house she rented.
The tribunal based its decision on the landmark "Osaki" court case, in which tenants who accidentally set fire to their rental house did not have to pay for the damage.
Landlords around the country became concerned that if they had insurance, the tenant would not have to pay even in cases of carelessness.
However, the Palmerston North District Court has overturned the tribunal's decision and ordered Stewart to pay about $3790 in carpet replacement costs, court costs and lost rent.
Judge David Smith said he was "of the view" that the tribunal adjudicator was wrong for concluding the damage was unintentional.
Not only had the tenant breached a no-dog clause in her tenancy agreement, but she had continued to let them in after perhaps a couple of accidents.
Fairfax Media was unable to contact Stewart, who did not attend the case.
Russ said he was "pretty happy with the outcome. Common sense has prevailed." He said there was a big difference between damage based on a pot fire and damage which was allowed to happen. "People have to be responsible for their actions."
Tenancy expert Scotney Williams of tenancy.co.nz said the appeal case would help both landlords and tenants by clarifying the meaning of unintentional damage. "The decision being a district court decision creates binding precedent at the Tenancy Tribunal for similar cases", he said. He said the District Court used a passage from the Brookers Summary Offence, a legal text book, to support its decision.
"Conduct will be intentional when it is deliberate, and not accidental, and [resulting damage] will be intentional if the defendant meant to cause it or {probably) knew it was going to result," the court order said regarding the reference.
Building and Construction Minister Nick Smith has proposed to change the current law so a tenant would be liable for damage of up to four weeks of rent or, if it was more, the landlord's insurance excess.
The law change is currently going through consultation.
Kind regards
Ross Barnett
Population Growth vs Number of Houses Being Built
20 February 2017
Population Growth vs Number of Houses Being Built
In our January 2016 Blog, we looked at these stats. I have now updated them for the last year.
Hamilton
- From the 2006 to 2013 census, the population grew 12,024 to 141,612. This is an increase of approximately 1,700 per year.
- HCC 10 year plan 2015 to 2025 "projected to grow from 153,000 in 2016 to 174,000 in 2025", or 2,100 to 2,300 approximately per year.
- Statistics NZ show 1,179 new dwellings from January 2016 to December 2016.
- From our January 2016 Blog, average 2.65 people per house.
- New dwellings can house 3,124 new people in the year.
From this information, Hamilton is building more houses than it requires by around 350 houses or to accommodate 924 people. This could be catching up a shortage. I would, therefore, be cautious buying in Hamilton and make sure the figures really work. It will be interesting to watch rental statistics over the next year to see if there are excess rentals!
Need 830 new houses per year Vs Building 1,179
Waikato
- From the 2006 to 2013 Census, the population grew 22,815 to 403,638. This is an increase of approximately 3,300 per year.
- Statistics NZ showed 2.3% growth to June 2016 or 10,000 approximately per year.
- Statistics NZ show 3,552 new dwellings from January 2016 to December 2016. November 2014 to October 2015 was 2,756, so 796 more than around a year before.
- From our January 2016 Blog, average 2.65 people per house.
- New dwellings can house 11,903 new people in the year.
From this information, Waikato is building pretty much the perfect number of houses.
Need 3,585 new houses per year Vs Building 3,552
Tauranga
- From the 2006 to 2013 Census, the population grew 10,905 to 114,789. This is an icnrease of approximately 1,600 per year.
- Tauranga City 10 year plan 2015 to 2025, 579 growth 2018-2023, or 1,900 approximately per year.
- Statistics NZ show 1,695 new dwellings from January 2016 to December 2016.
- From our January 2016 Blog, average 2.6 people per house.
- New dwellings can house 4,407 new people in the year.
From this information, Tauranga is building more houses than it requires by around 950 houses. I would, therefore, be very cautious buying in Tauranga and make sure the figures really work. It will be interesting to watch rental statistics over the next year to see if there are excess rentals!
Need 732 new houses per year Vs Building 1,695
BOP new dwellings, 2,520 from January 2016 to December 2016. November 2014 to October 2015 was 1,734, so 786 more than around a year before.
Auckland
- From the 2006 to 2013 census, the population grew 110,589 to 1,415,550. This is an increase of approximately 16,000 per year.
- Statistics NZ showed 2.8% growth to June 2016 or 41,860 approximately per year.
- Statistics NZ show 9,930 new dwellings from January 2016 to December 2016. November 2014 to October 2015 was 8,935, so 995 more than around a year before.
- From our January 2016 Blog, average 3 people per house.
- New dwellings can house 29,790 new people in the year.
From this information, Auckland is not building enough houses to keep up with demand, and is approximately 4,000 houses short in one year! This is similar to the stats a year ago, and Auckland seems to be getting further and further behind.
Need 13,953 new houses per year Vs Building 9,930
When you look at this information overall, it is concerning that Hamilton, Waikato, and Tauranga seem to be building considerably more houses than required. This could create a large over supply and a possible 'bust'.
It appears that a lot of the lift in property prices in Hamilton, Waikato, and Tauranga is due to greed and the ripple effect, rather than being based on the true fundamentals of supply and demand.
Auckland, on the other hand, has a well-documented shortage, and over the last year the housing shortage has gotten worse by 4,000 houses. If immigration stays high and the Auckland population continues to grow, then I still cannot see Auckland house prices crashing. While there might be a flat period or blip, economics suggest that Auckland house prices will continue to rise.
Kind regards
Ross Barnett
