Case Update: Tenant obligations

The tenancy between the landlord, Mr M and the tenants, Mr H and Ms F ended on 11 October 2018.

Methamphetamine testing
At the end of the tenancy, Mr M had the premises tested for methamphetamine contamination. Mr M and his insurers were informed that the levels of methamphetamine present in the property amounted to 14.4 µgm/100 cm².
The Tribunal noted that the testing company, insurers and Mr M relied on the New Zealand Standard under the NZS8510:2017 being 1.5 µgm/100 cm² and found it surprising that no reference to the Gluckman report had been made which refers to a higher point being 15 µgm/100 cm². The Tribunal stated that they must have been aware of the potential impacts the recent report would have on testing and treatment.
The Tribunal found that Mr M had evidenced that residue levels exceeded the amount found in the pre-tenancy test and awarded the cost of the initial testing.

Obligations
The tenant’s obligations are outlined under section 40 of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986.

Reasonably clean and tidy
The Tribunal took into consideration photographs of the premises taken by Mr M at the end of the tenancy and also the exhaustion experienced by Mr H in the attempt to remove everything in time (the property was handed over after the 90-day notice). The Tribunal found that Mr H’s obligation had been breached and Mr M was awarded amounts for cleaning and carpet cleaning.

Keys
Two sets of keys were originally provided to the tenants and only one set was returned. This claim was awarded.

Smoke alarms and lightbulbs
The Tribunal ordered that the smoke alarm batteries and standard lightbulbs were to be replaced by the tenant.

Curtains
All curtains were replaced by Mr M. The Tribunal were not satisfied that Mr M discharged the burden of proof in that the curtains needed to be replaced however, did find that the curtains would have required cleaning.

Damage to the premises
A tenant must pay the cost of repairs, if the damage is intentional.

Oven
The oven was installed at the commencement of the tenancy and the Tribunal found that it had been left in an unacceptable condition with surface damage. The Tribunal found that the damage was intentionally caused by the tenants and awarded costs.

Hole in the wall
Mr M claimed an amount to repair a hole in the wall. The Tribunal found that the damage was careless damage caused by Mr M and dismissed the claim.

The Tribunal also dismissed Mr M’s claims to loss of property, loss of rental value and mental anguish.
All claims by the tenant were dismissed.

You can find the full decision here.

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Television reception and telephone connection

The issue in this case was whether the tenants, Mr S and Ms M were entitled to reimbursement from the landlord, in respect of issues with the television reception and telephone connection.

The tenancy began in January 2015.

Television reception
The property was provided to the tenants with a satellite dish already in place.

In July/August 2016, the television began to have reception issues. A contractor, Mr K was called to fix the reception issue. Mr S informed the landlord that they were still experiencing problems with their reception. The landlord then arranged for Mr K to return to the premises and solve the issue. Mr S was then informed by Mr K that there was no issue with the dish, but the problem was caused by Mr S and Ms M’s equipment. As a result of this finding, Mr S and Ms M were charged for the call out.

Nonetheless, the television continued to have reception problems despite the two call outs. Mr S then decided to engage a new contractor, Mr P. Mr P was able to determine that the reception issues were in fact caused by the dish and not the tenants’ equipment. Mr P fixed the reception issue and it did not occur again. Mr S paid for this repair.

The Tribunal found that the landlord breached section 45 of the Act as they had not maintained the television dish and the tenants were able to evidence that the fault was due to the dish as opposed to their equipment.

Telephone connection
The telephone had issues with its connection at the onset of the tenancy and this was known to the tenants, who nonetheless, accepted the tenancy.

The tenants were using Spark 4G network up until it ceased operation in their area. The tenants then arranged for the telephone to be repaired at their own costs.

No requests had been made to the landlord to fix the telephone connection at any time.

The Tribunal found that this claim failed on the basis that the tenants had accepted the telephone issue at the commencement of the tenancy and had raised no issues throughout the tenancy.

You can find the full decision here.

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REINZ and Real-iQ deliver the NZ Certificate in Residential Property Management

Lift your professionalism and standards and prepare yourself now for potential industry regulation.
Click here for more information.

AML/CFT Compliance

Grumpy vendors?
Some vendors may resist providing identification and other information that agents need in order to complete Customer Due Diligence and Enhanced Customer Due Diligence. In these situations, agents may wish to explain to vendors that lawyers and accountants require this information and, from 1 August this year, motor vehicle dealers, boat sellers, art dealers and even some jewellers will also require people to provide identification. Anti-money laundering compliance requirements are set down by law and agents must comply; if they do not, they may face significant fines.

Agents may also wish to direct vendors and purchasers to the public education campaign released by the Government: www.keepourmoneyclean.govt.nz

AML: No one-size-fits-all
Real estate agents are now required to comply with anti-money laundering legislation. The legislation requires each agency to have a personalised risk assessment and compliance program that covers the agency’s unique business. As each agency is different, risk assessments and compliance programs will vary. For example, an agency that sells residential property to local purchasers is going to have a very different risk assessment and compliance program to an agency that sells commercial or lifestyle properties to overseas buyers. For this reason, there is no one-size-fits-all, template risk assessment and compliance program available.

There are now a variety of AML compliance service providers available to assist you with your risk assessments and compliance programs. If you need help, we urge you to contact an AML compliance specialist is your area.

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Conjunctional Arrangements and s134

I have a conjunctional agreement with the listing agent. I have an employee who wants to purchase the listed property. Do I need to provide a valuation and make disclosure under section 134 of the Real Estate Agents Act?

Subject to the sole agency’s agreement, you may be able to enter into a conjunctional agreement with the sole agency to share the commission.

However, it is important to remember that under a conjunctional agreement, you are still acting as an agent for the vendor (and hence the vendor is your client). This also means that you should still comply with section 134 of the Real Estate Agents Act (“the Act”), if you or a person related to you wants to purchase the client’s property.

To recap, section 134 states that where a licensee is carrying out agency work in a transaction, they must obtain their client’s consent in the prescribed form (including providing a registered valuation at the licensee’s expense), if they or a related person is purchasing or wants to purchase their client’s property.

“Related person” includes a licensee’s employee, pursuant to section 137 of the Act.

In a December 2017 CAC decision, the licensee was a licensed Agent Company which was found guilty of unsatisfactory conduct for failing to comply with section 134. The licensee in that case had a conjunctional agreement with the listing agent. A prospective purchaser of the property was employed by the licensee, in another branch, as an administrator. The CAC found that the licensee should have followed section 134 under these circumstances.

REINZ has an Information Sheet on Conjunction Arrangements.

Verifiable Training

North Shore Verifiable Training
Wednesday 19 & Thursday 20 February
Registration deadline Thursday 14 February - a $50 per person late fee will apply after this date.

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All 2019 Verifiable Training dates now available

Check for your regions training here.

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REINZ welcomes back Tom Panos

New Year, New You! Auckland - Thursday 21 February
Check out the flier here

Note: Tom will also be presenting in Wellington (17 May) & Christchurch in 2019 - Info to come

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Verifiable Dates for 2019

Region	Dates	Location
February
North Shore	19 - 20	Netball North Harbour Centre	Book Now
March
Christchurch 1	6 - 7	The Atrium	Book Now
Queenstown	20 - 21	Mercure Queenstown	Book Now
April
Auckland 1	3 - 4	Events on Khyber	Book Now
Wellington/Lower Hutt	10 - 11	Lower Hutt Events Centre	Book Now
Dunedin	10 - 11	Edgar Centre	Book Now
May
Thames	1 - 2	Thames Civic Centre	Book Now
Whangarei	8 - 9	Northland Events Centre	Book Now
New Plymouth	15 - 16	Novotel	Book Now
Hamilton	29 - 30	Workingmen's Club	Book Now

Regional Meetings

Blenheim Regional Meeting
Monday 18 February, 10am - 12pm
Come hear Bindi Norwell speak about what’s happening at REINZ and share the latest regional data. Our partner Property Press will share some relevant new research. We look forward to seeing you!

Nelson Regional Meeting
Monday 18 February, 2pm - 4pm
Come hear Bindi Norwell speak about what’s happening at REINZ and share the latest regional data. Our partner Property Press will share some relevant new research and at the end of the presentation there will be the opportunity to mix and mingle over drinks and canapés. We look forward to seeing you!

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Sporting Events

REINZ 16th Annual Fishing Tournament
Friday 1 March, 8am - 5pm; Weigh-in 3pm - 4pm
Auckland Sailing Club, 8 Tamaki Drive, Auckland

Partnered with Property Press, this is gearing up to be a great day with spot prizes and $2,250 worth of cash prizes up for grabs!

The registrations for the 2018 REINZ Fishing Tournament are now open and you can purchase all tickets online through Eventbrite.

Please feel free to send this link through to any others that you know may be interested in the competition. Friends, family and clients are all welcome to join, but please ensure that everyone is registered.

Book those charters now and come and enjoy a fun, competitive day on the water!

If you have any questions, please get in touch with the Events Team

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February
Blenheim Regional Meeting	18 February	10am - 12pm	Scenic Hotel, Marlborough
Nelson Regional Meeting	18 February	2pm - 4pm	Trailways Hotel
March
REINZ Annual Fishing Tournament	1 March	8am - 5pm	Auckland Sailing Club
Thames Bowling Tournament	7 March	9am - 3.30pm	Thames Bowling Club
South Island Rural Seminar	26 March	TBC	TBC
April
Commercial & Industrial Breakfast	10 April	7am - 10am	Maritime Room, Auckland
June
NZ Auctioneering Championships - Draw	23 June	5.30pm - 7.30pm	REINZ, Auckland
NZ Auctioneering Championships - Heats	24 June	10am - 5pm	REINZ, Auckland
NZ Auctioneering Championships - Finals	25 June	10am - 6pm	REINZ, Auckland

Introducing the REINZ Enhanced Statistics features

Expand your search results and your market knowledge with 'search by name'.

You can now get access to an individual's property information by typing their name in the search bar of the map function:

• Open the search map
• Type a name
• Hover to preview the property, click to select

It's that easy! Search now.

Funding of up to $7,000 for real estate and property sector women available

Building on the significant developmental momentum achieved in 2018, Women & Leadership Australia is administering a national initiative to support the development of female leaders across NZ’s real estate and property sector.

The campaign is providing women with grants of between $3,000 and $7,000 to enable participation in a range of leadership development programs.

The scholarship funding is provided with the specific intent of providing powerful and effective development opportunities for real estate and property sector women; however the funding is strictly limited and has to be allocated prior to the end of March.

Expressions of Interest
Find out more and register your interest by completing the Expression of Interest form here prior to Friday 15 March.

REINZ works in partnership with NetYourJob recruitment to provide maximum industry coverage when you’re looking for real estate staff. NetYourJob can provide REINZ Members with competitive marketing rates for job advertising. Contact NetYourJob on 0800 638 968 to find out more or click here to view new jobs this week.