Another article about rents rising. And yet people continue to complain (incorrectly) that landlords are getting a tax break. Can’t they see that less landlords means less rental property – it’s really that simple.
People are not buying or building rental property right now, so how is this situation going to improve for renters?
Labour & Greens supporters, this is your doing, you are creating hardship for renters. I know you are envious of anyone who is successful, but why take it out on tenants?
See article from The Press below:
By Katie Townshend
A Nelson renter was forced to moved to Christchurch after missing out on 42 properties.
It comes as the cost of a rental has risen 7.3% year-on-year in the region, and property managers are reporting demand outstripping supply – all while investors are exiting the market due to rising costs.
Data from Trade Me shows the rental price index for Nelson-Tasman in March was $590, up 7.3% from $550 in March 2023.
For Nelson, the price increase had gone up 3.6% to $570, while Tasman had increased 8.1% to $600.
Compared to a year ago supply for the region was up 1%, while demand was down 1%. The median days for rental listings was 15 days.
Kayla Bafico knows first-hand the struggle to find a property, after she and her wife were left homeless while trying to find a rental, racking up 42 rejections – and those were the ones they heard back from.
“It’s exhausting, its stressful and it makes you want to stop going forward,” she said.
They needed to find a property after their private landlord wanted to move back in.
The couple were both employed with good references, but still couldn’t find a house for themselves and their three children who lived with them part-time.
The competition was fierce, and many landlords seemed unwilling to rent to people with children, she said.
Many of the properties were managed under a local monopoly, which made it hard to get a foot in the door.
“You’ve got to know someone to know someone to get in somewhere.”
The couple’s income was too high to qualify for WINZ assistance, so they ended up homeless, living on people’s couches or in their car.
That led them to move to Christchurch. They started looking on a Monday and had a house by the Friday.
Properties in Christchurch were much more affordable and allowed their cats, she said.
Bayleys residential property manager Rob Vining said the lack of stock in the region was driving up the price for rentals, along with the rising cost of owning an investment property.
The lack of stock meant there was often 20 inquiries for a single property, meaning fierce competition.
That meant property managers and landlords were left to choose between several strong applicants.
“You’re literally tossing a coin.”
Unfortunately most people missed out, he said.
“It’s not because the other applicants have got any bad marks or any sort of form of bad history … but there’s only one house.”
Price-wise, people could expect to pay an extra $100 per week for each additional bedroom, he said.
“Normally, in Nelson and Richmond, you’ll pay $600 to $650 a week for a three bedroom home, $500 a week for a two bedroom property and $400 a week for a one bedroom unit.”
Immigration and people moving to Nelson from other parts of the motu was also adding to the competition for rentals.
Many investors were selling up, as the cost of owning and maintaining properties increased, he said.
“A lot of the are saying I’m better off not having the stress or the worry.”
Chris Leighton from Tall Poppy said not many investors were active in the market at the moment.
Usually investors would be competing with first home buyers for properties, but that wasn’t happening, she said.
“It’s an unbalanced market that we’re seeing at the moment.”
Changes to the bright line test and interest rates pulling back should help attract investors back, she said.
Juliet Robinson from Quinovic Nelson said there was a good supply of newer properties becoming available at the moment.
“I’m working with house companies including G.J. Gardner Homes and Jennian Homes among others, who have built new homes speculatively in fast-growing parts of the Nelson area. Not all of them have sold in the quieter sales market, so they’re looking to generate income from them for a period.”
Many people were coming from larger cities in the North Island, at the higher end of the rental market who are working remotely in IT, she said.
“Others are finding work opportunities in Nelson or buying businesses in the city.”
