Landlords fined over house rental
An Invercargill couple have been fined $3520 for breaching the law after failing to look after their rental property.
Adrian and Elizabeth Jones were fined by the Tenancy Tribunal after it found the couple failed to insulate the house and also failed to do necessary repairs despite repeated requests from their tenants.
The Teviot St property has since been sold and the new owners have decided to tear down the building.
In May 2018, James Bryant, Roger Brand and Nicholas Armour signed a lease for the three-bedroom house. The tenancy agreement was for one year and the house was managed by Macpherson Real Estate agent Tom Dymond.
During each property inspection, the tenants raised concerns over the failure of the landlords to maintain the house.
The tribunal found Dymond relayed these concerns back to the landlords but nothing was done. In July, Dymond told the Jones family the agency would no longer be able to manage their property due to the failure to do the repairs and to insulate the house. On August 1, the tenants filed their complaint against the Jones family and Dymond.
During the hearing, the tenants agreed Dymond had been easy to work with and had made the landlords aware of their concerns. The tribunal dismissed the complaint against him.
However, the tribunal was scathing about the Joneses.
In its decision, the tribunal said the landlords had committed an unlawful act by failing to carry out necessary repairs.
The landlords also breached the law by not insulating the property, the tribunal found.
Since July 1, ceiling and underfloor insulation is compulsory in all rental homes where it is ‘‘reasonably practicable’’ to install.