On the 30th July 2019, new tenancy legislation was passed which will affect landlords and tenants in a number of ways.

The RTA Act significantly impacts on the rights and obligations of both landlords and tenants in three areas:

1. Liability for careless damage to rental premises causes by a tenant

2. Management of methamphetamine contamination in residential rental premises; and

3. The use of ‘non-residential’ premises for residential use

The amendments take effect on the 27th August 2019.

If you are a landlord, there are some key points for you to be aware of in the new RTA Act;

1. Tenants and people they are responsible for are liable for the cost of damage, through careless act or omission, but limited to the lessor of the landlords insurance excess or four weeks rent;

2. Landlords need to include insurance information as part of new lease agreements or make it available on request for existing lease agreements

3. Any changes to insurance policies need to be provided to the tenant;

4. New provisions are introduced to enable landlords to sample, test and potentially terminate leases in relation to methamphetamine contamination.

5. The RTA Act does not apply to property that is not lawfully able to be used for residential purposes, therefore not being a ‘residential premises’ for example rental of a property without a building or a resource consent.

A full copy of the amendment can be found here.