If your question is about tenancy agreements:

A tenancy agreement is a contract between tenants and landlords. They must be in writing, but the Residential Tenancies Act still applies if there is no written agreement. The tenancy agreement applies from the start date of the tenancy (as listed in the agreement) until the tenancy ends.

We have a residential tenancy agreement available. We regularly update this agreement so please check you are using the latest version available on our website when starting a tenancy as older versions may not meet current requirements.

You may find the answer to your question on one of the below pages:

• General information about tenancy agreements (including templates)
• Adding extra conditions to tenancy agreements
• Additional statements that must be included in tenancy agreements

If your question is about ending a tenancy:

If the tenancy is periodic (there is no fixed end date), then landlords and tenants need to give the correct amount of notice.

If the tenancy is for a fixed-term, neither the landlord nor the tenant can give notice to end it early. However there are some options available if landlords or tenants want to do this.

You will find more information on ending a tenancy on the below pages:

• Find out the correct notice period for periodic tenancies
• Information on ending a fixed-term tenancy early
• Information on what happens when a fixed-term expires

If your question is about bond lodgements or refunds:

COVID-19 update: As part of the Government response to COVID-19 bond refunds and bond transfers are being treated as an essential service, this means we will continue to process refunds within 5 working days.

We will continue to process bond lodgements, however, there may be delays whilst resources are being reprioritised for refunds and transfers.

If a landlord charges a bond they must lodge it with us within 23 working days. The maximum bond that can be charged is the equivalent of 4 weeks’ rent. When we’ve received a complete and correct form, our processing times are:

• Bond lodgements: up to 10 working days
• Bond refunds: up to 5  working days

If we need further information in order to process your request, we will contact you by phone, email or letter.

Once the bond is lodged, the tenant and landlord will receive an acknowledgement. This will include the bond number.

The same people who sign the bond lodgement form need to sign the bond refund form when the tenancy ends. If any of the signatures are missing or if the signatures don’t match, there’ll be delays processing the refund.

If the landlord and tenant can’t agree on the refund amount, you will need to apply to the Tenancy Tribunal.

If the landlord or tenant can’t or won’t sign the bond refund form, complete the form anyway and send it to us. We will try to contact the person who hasn’t signed to check with the refund.

There’s more information about bonds, including how to prevent problems with bonds, on the below pages:

• Lodge your bond online
• Bond refunds
• Preventing problems with bonds

If your question is about Tenancy Tribunal applications:

To make an application to the Tenancy Tribunal you need to complete an application form. It costs $20.44 to apply to the Tenancy Tribunal. You can apply online.

You can also view, amend, respond to or provide more information for an existing application online. If you have already submitted your application, you can upload additional documents and add notes to the application. You will not be able to change existing documents or information.

If you need to withdraw your application, you can do this by sending a message to our case management team through the online application system.

• Make or amend a Tenancy Tribunal application

Applications that are scheduled for a hearing are transferred to the relevant District Court 5 days before the hearing. If you have a query or want to withdraw the application within this timeframe, you’ll need to contact the District Court.

• Contact the District Court(external link)

If your question is about rights of entry or inspections:

Landlords can enter the grounds of the property without giving notice. They do need to make sure they’re not interfering with the tenant’s peace comfort and privacy.

To go inside the rental property, landlords must give the right amount of notice or get their tenant’s permission. Notice periods vary depending on why the landlord is entering the property.

It’s a good idea for landlords to regularly inspect the property. Inspections can’t be more often than once every four weeks.

There’s more information on rights of entry and inspections on the below pages:

• More information on accessing the property
• More information on rights of entry for boarding houses
• More information on inspections

If your question is about rent:

It’s important that tenants pay the rent on time. If they don’t, they are breaching the tenancy agreement. If either the landlord or tenant notices a rent payment has been missed, let the other person know straight away and see if you can agree a way to bring the rent up to date.

If you can’t reach an agreement:

• the landlord can send a notice to remedy (if the tenant owes less than 21 days rent).
• the landlord can apply to the Tenancy Tribunal for termination of the tenancy (if the tenant owes 21 days of rent or more, or doesn’t remedy the overdue rent).

There’s more information on rent, including rent increases and rent arrears, on the below pages:

• General information about rent
• Rent increases and reductions
• Rent arrears

If your question is about the healthy homes standards or other recent legislation changes:

Healthy homes standards

The healthy homes standards became law on 1 July 2019. They introduce minimum standards for heating, insulation, ventilation, moisture ingress and drainage, and draught stopping in rental properties. Landlords will need to comply with the standards between 1 July 2021 and 1 July 2024. The actual compliance date will depend on their situation.

Our healthy homes section has more information.

Legislation changes

The Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2020 took effect on 12 August 2020. The law changes are broad and affect both tenants and landlords.

There are three phases, with different law changes coming into force in August 2020, February 2021 and August 2021.

Our law changes information page has further details.

Where else can I find information?

We can provide information on rights and responsibilities under the Residential Tenancies Act (the Act). If your question is not covered by the information above, you can contact us using the details below.

Not all renting arrangements are covered by Act, for example:

• flatmates (people who live in the property but aren’t on the tenancy agreement)
• where someone is a boarder or lodger living with the property owner
• holiday homes
• retirement villages and rest homes
• commercial tenancies.

If one of the above situations apply to you, we’re unable to provide any further information. There are other organisations that provide information and support listed below.

Support and information for landlords:

• New Zealand Property Investors Federation(external link)
• Business.govt.nz(external link)
• EECA Energywise(external link)

Support and information for property managers:

• Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ)(external link)
• Property Managers Institute of New Zealand(external link)
• Leading Property Managers Association(external link)

Support and information for tenants and flatmates:

• Citizens Advice Bureau(external link)
• Community Law(external link)
• Aratohu Tenant Advocacy(external link)