If National wins ...

[craic]

At the present time we have a large part of State Housing stock empty and the excuse seems to be that the housing is below standard or drug affected or whatever. Now Labours proposals will push a lot of private rentals into the same wheelbarrow. Landlords will, in many cases, sell and opt for simpler investments in other areas. In the worst areas, Auckland and the like, investment in rental property is hard work. I know of at least one person locally who lives happily in a tin garage. It may not seem to be very nice living in a tin shed but its a contract between two individuals and the government should not be involved. I should be able to go to the housing Corp and suggest that I and my family will move into one of your grotty properties and spend the next two years on reduced rent while I restore the place in my spare time. Instead the places remain empty and open to vandalism. Why are there no such initiatives available, only the prospect of bigger sticks to beat landlords.

[artemis]

There are always state houses vacant, and Housing NZ reports in detail on these quarterly.

486 state houses under repair at end of June (114 in Auckland). These are classified as short term vacancies, \ready to let when repairs done.

There are also 684 long term vacancies due to 'renewal or maintenance' (62 in Auckland). These properties include 265 meth contaminated and 73 suspected being tested.

Other long term vacant properties are down for redevelopment, sale or demolition.

[winner69]

Elections around the world the last few years have been weird events. New Zealand no exception. A lot of it has to do with generational changes.

What's going on isn't a surprise if one had read The Fourth Turning: an American Prophecy by Strauss and Howe.

An intriguing read - not too late to read as the prophecy is still playing out






I know a guy called Bannon uses it as his bible but maybe he's more switched on then what people him credit for

[Bjauck]

..........but Jacinda sent me an email saying she's going to make it 'fairer and more stable for landlords'

Her (OK Labours) initiatives will only see 50% of NZers paying more rent methinks - and some can't even afford it now.

If tenants cannot afford the rents asked, I guess the houses will remain empty or landlords will sell their investments. Maybe more first home owners will be able to move back into the market.

If there is more security of tenure for good tenants, maybe more tenants will be able to provide stability for their families and take good care of their landlord's house.

[artemis]

If tenants cannot afford the rents asked, I guess the houses will remain empty or landlords will sell their investments.....

What happens to those tenants?

If they are young singles or couples they will move back home into their old room or move into a flat. Not a bad scenario and will give them a chance to bump up their Kiwisaver account.

If they have children or pets they will ask relations to budge up and make room for them. Overcrowding is a significant cause of illness and stress, plus if the rellies are tenants they are at risk of being evicted for cause if numbers breach the tenancy agreement. If rellies are state house tenants, they may be allowed to stay but income related rent will increase.

Not all tenants who can't afford rent will fit those common scenarios obviously but many will.

[fungus pudding]

If there is more security of tenure for good tenants, maybe more tenants will be able to provide stability for their families and take good care of their landlord's house.

Let me guess. You've never been a landlord - huh? Turn that on it's head. Good tenants who take proper care of their landlord's house seldom have a problem with stability in the homes they rent.

[BlackPeter]

If tenants cannot afford the rents asked, I guess the houses will remain empty or landlords will sell their investments. Maybe more first home owners will be able to move back into the market.

If there is more security of tenure for good tenants, maybe more tenants will be able to provide stability for their families and take good care of their landlord's house.

I agree with that. And while not normally supporting Labour's policies ... I think the proposed changes are good - and just moving NZ's tenancy laws a bit closer to what's since a long time standard in more civilised (and wealthier) countries.

Improving the protection of (reasonable and reliable) tenants who pay their rents on time, increasing the minimum notice period to give tenants some more stability in their life, reducing the number of rent hikes per year to one and requiring the landlord to define already beforehand a formula for any rent hikes are all good moves. Hey, National could have come up with that, couldn't they?

All these conditions are absolutely standard in countries with much larger and stable markets for rented homes and with overall higher wealth. I have not heard the sky fall in in e.g. Switzerland and Germany when they improved their respective tenancy laws many decades ago to a standard Labour is now proposing for New Zealand.

Quite the opposite - rents in these countries are typically lower than here, tenancy contracts are typically very long-term - they often run over decades, the housing stock to rent is often better quality than what you can find in NZ, and for some funny reasons are there still a sufficient number of willing landlords around, and they make money as well.

[Bjauck]

What happens to those tenants?
...

Depends...will Investors/Landlords be prepared to keep an non-earning investment if they insist on seeking a rent that no tenant could afford? There again, I guess it depends whether or not a capital gain was the main reason for the investment. Maybe many investors will decide that the changes are relatively minor and do not affect the pofitability of their investments. Perhaps some may decide the benefits of having contented good tenants, who can make longer term plans for rent costs and terms of tenure, actually enhance the value of their investments.

Overcrowding already exists. If it gets worse, then would it spur even a laissez-faire government into providing more social housing or otherwise remaining at risk of needing to provide more funding for social welfare, prisons and police to cater for a continued break down in society?

[Bjauck]

Let me guess. You've never been a landlord - huh? Turn that on it's head. Good tenants who take proper care of their landlord's house seldom have a problem with stability in the homes they rent.

I have been a tenant. I also seek advice from others and listen to other's opinions and experience. However, I do have opinions on all types of situations, which affect me indirectly, but of which I have had no direct experience. Don't you?

[Joshuatree]

JT you obviously haven't taken heed of Taxinda's order to be positive. Even she admitted on TV that the NZ economy was the envy of the World and very few countries doing better, on most scores.

Regarding the slave trade, the most noticeable example of it was Labour's import of young socialists to work on their election campaign with no employment rights attached and 3rd World accommodation conditions.
It is simply silly and ill informed on your behalf to suggest we should stop bringing in labour for the horticulture industry (I think that's what you're saying in your post). The local workers are not there and the few that are, are generally totally unreliable. Stopping immigration for such jobs would kill this fast growing industry and many others. But its difficult to estimate what effect Labour's "policy" would have as they've provided no details for their immigration or any other policy and how its going to be implemented..

I just read her ridiculous comments yesterday on going after landlords. How pathetic !

No more pathetic then your ignorance Taxiceman. Less immigration got it!. We can't compete with the slave trade; got it! we need level playing field for local workers to fill many of those jobs.We need to stop the slave trade its a 3rd world thing happening here! Landlords need to be sorted out; many will not fix anything resulting in poor health and living. Tenants will get booted if they make a stand.sickening.