Campaign to halt ‘looming’ rent increases
An open letter signed by 19 community organisations has called upon Minister for Auckland Michael Wood to install an immediate rent freeze for six months to allow flood-stricken tenants to get back on their feet.
Renters United’s Geordie Rogers drafted the letter. He told Stuff a freeze would give tenants living week to week enough certainty to feed their families without the fear of being priced out of their community.
‘‘There are families where parents are working two jobs, during the day and night, and driving for Uber in the weekend just to pay their rent, which takes up 70% of their income.’’
Rogers said these families had been hit harder by the floods that had recently lashed Auckland because they might not have insurance to replace belongings.
As of Thursday, Auckland Council building inspectors had issued 196 red notices, forcing residents to leave their homes, and 971 yellow notices, restricting entry to the houses.
Rogers is worried there will be a high demand for rentals as flood-damaged properties are taken off the market and that landlords will profiteer from this by raising rents.
The open letter to Wood refers to a controversial interview given to Radio New Zealand by Kristin Sutherland, of the Auckland Property Investors Association (APIA).
‘‘With less than a week passing since the floods we are already seeing property investment groups preparing to increase rents for communities devastated by flooding,’’ the letter says.
‘‘While renters are struggling to clean and repair their homes, and get kai back on the table, the last thing they need is the looming threat of yet another rent increase.’’
However, APIA general manager Sarina Gibbon said the interview had been ‘‘misunderstood’’ and the comments merely reflected that a reduction in supply would result in an increase in demand.
‘‘She answered honestly and correctly that supply and demand would increase prices, but by no means was it condoning landlords to jack up the rent in an opportunistic way,’’ she said to Stuff.
Gibbon called upon Renters United to focus on common ground in supporting tenants and landlords, and ‘‘forget the politics’’ and ‘‘ill-conceived feel-good policies’’.
‘‘I understand they don’t want landlords profiteering off a natural disaster, but there is no risk of that from what I have seen.
‘‘We have been fielding inquiries about how to make insurance claims and help tenants.’’ She pointed out that a temporary rent freeze would help families who already had a tenancy but not those who were forced to find a new one.
She said it also ‘‘kicked the can down the road’’, whereas there were already protections against increases in the Residential Tenancies Act.
Landlords are only allowed to put up rent once a year and if tenants believe they are paying substantially above market rent, they can go to the Tenancy Tribunal and have it reduced.
But Rogers does not believe those rules are effective because struggling families are not well-equipped to go to the tribunal. ‘‘It can be incredibly difficult for them to prepare for a tribunal hearing. English may not be their first language, let alone understanding the tribunal’s legalese.’’