Call to regulate property managers grows
NOONE said being a landlord would be easy.
New healthy homes standards, changed liability for damage rules and contending with meth contamination all add to the mix.
Landlords could hand over the headache to a reputable property manager.
However, the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) says that might be easier said than done, with no regulatory structure and limited accountability in place for property managers.
Ongoing concerns over the unregulated nature of the property management industry and some recent horror stories has prompted a call to review the rules.
REINZ chief executive Bindi Norwell said there had been a huge level of interest from its members and others in the sector to do just that.
‘‘We’ve had a number of landlords and tenants share their stories of how the lack of regulation has impacted them personally.
‘‘We’ve had stories of financial losses, extreme emotional stress, health problems, regulations being ignored, damage to property and a loss of faith in using property managers.’’
Stories are prolific.
Last month, one Dunedin tenant and his flatmates took a landlord to the tenancy tribunal after the property manager had tried to video the property during a flat inspection. Claims of breach of privacy, a hole in the floor and mould resulted in the landlord being fined $3500.
There are also a host of tribunal decisions related to management companies illegally not lodging bonds and then also having to pay exemplary damages to the tenant.
‘‘Every time a story of consumer harm arises in the media as a result of a property manager behaving in a manner that is dishonest or lacks transparency, this just strengthens our view that the property management industry needs to be regulated,’’ Ms Norwell said.
There are about 184,000 homes across New Zealand that are managed by property managers.
‘‘If the Government can look into regulating the energy industry due to 33,000 households having their power disconnected, surely they can agree to review regulation of the property management industry, which is an issue that affects more than 180,000 homes.’’
Leading Property Managers Association (LPMA) NZ general manager Ashley Giles said there was ‘‘no doubt’’ that the industry needed an improved line of accountability.
He said the LPMA had a growing membership, 100 at present in New Zealand, providing training, advice, resourcing and a code of practice concerning, for example, conflict resolution.
‘‘This is a market where literally billions of dollars in rent are paid monthly, so at the very least all rents should be held in an audited trust account to protect landlords’ money, as well as a mandated minimum level of training for property management professionals.’’
Mr Giles said in some respects, landlords had a more difficult road than tenants where there were issues.
‘‘It’s harder for landlords to take managers to the tenancy tribunal, so their only real legal option is through a district claims process, which we don’t think is fair or reasonable for our industry.’’
He said the property management sector also needed to speak with a united voice, with REINZ and tenancy advocacy groups.
‘‘We need to be more collaborative, to have conversations with people about improving property management as a business, rather than just the legislative environment we work in.’’