Important info and your obligations

Periodic tenancies

The Landlord may give 90 days’ notice to you to end the tenancy if:

• the property is to be sold or if the property has been sold,
• if the property requires extensive alteration or refurbishment and,
• 63 days’ notice; if the owner wishes to reoccupy the property for themselves or family, or a company requires the property for staff or contractors.

A periodic tenancy may be ended by you giving us 28 days’ notice in writing, and a fixed-term tenancy will require you giving 28 days’ notice to end on or after the fixed term end date. Notice in writing must be posted, emailed or faxed to us (please allow an additional four days if posting). If you give written notice to us, we recommend that you phone to confirm that we have received this notice.

The notice must be given to end a fixed-term tenancy by either party; otherwise, the tenancy reverts to a periodic tenancy.

Fixed tenancies

Occasionally a tenancy will be a fixed term. A fixed-term means that the tenancy cannot be terminated by either party during this period. We may be able to assist you if you wish to break your fixed term tenancy agreement and the following conditions will apply;

The tenant is responsible for and must pay rent until the property is re-let to a suitable tenant (that we have approved of) and a binding agreement has been entered into. There will also be a cost for the time involved, advertising and credit reports etc.

You will be given this form when you are handed the keys to the property, at the time your Property Manager will walk through the property with you explaining notations. This is a very important document for you to look at when moving in. This form is used at the end of your tenancy for the bond refund so take time to make sure you’re happy with it. Please read it carefully and verify that it is correct. If you identify something we may have missed contact us within 24 hours. 

Occupancy

Only the people originally included on your application or Tenancy Agreement are allowed to reside permanently at the property. Any alteration to this must be discussed with our office as you may become in breach of your Tenancy Agreement if you choose to allow other people to reside at the property. The total number of occupants that may reside at the property is written on your Tenancy Agreement.

We carry out periodic inspections for maintenance purposes. You will be given at least 48 hours written notice of the day during business hours when this is to take place. The inspection time varies as it depends on the size of the property but an average inspection will take about 15 minutes. Our team takes property inspections very seriously and asks that you do as well. We will usually inspect your property every 13 weeks. If you wish to be present and the date does not suit, contact your Property Manager. We will try to accommodate your request but cannot guarantee this.

It is your responsibility to have the electricity/gas and telephone changed over to your name when you move into the property and to finalise these accounts when you vacate. Depending on your region, you may be responsible for water rates as well. If you require assistance with connecting power and telephone, Summit use companies which provide a connection service free of charge, making life a lot easier for you. Ask your Property Manager for details of how to make use of this service. 

Legally, we can ask for a maximum of four weeks rent bond. The bond money and form is lodged with the Department of Building and Housing. You will receive a receipt of the bond with a bond refund form within a few weeks of your tenancy starting. Keep this in a safe place. If there are any changes to the tenancy whilst residing at the property, it is imperative that the information on the bond form reflects this. Make sure that you fill out a Change of Tenant form which you can get from our office or is available online at www.dbh.govt.nz

Making appointments

It is very important that you arrange an appointment time if you wish to visit the office to discuss any issues or concerns you might have. Our Property Management staff are often out of the office conducting inspections or showing clients properties. We know that there’s nothing more annoying than having to wait or being unable to talk to the person that you need to. We’re more than happy to meet with you and assist in any way we can so please just call and make an appointment first.

You need insurance. Your landlord’s insurance policy does not protect your belongings. Under the Residential Tenancies Act, tenants are liable for any damage they, or their invited guests, cause intentionally or carelessly. Even if you are not named on the tenancy agreement, you should have the following:

Contents insurance policy to protect your belongings.
Personal liability policy to protect you from any careless damage you or your invited guests may cause to the property.

If an insurance company pays out a landlord for damage and believes that a tenant is liable for that damage, the insurance company may seek compensation from the tenant.* Personal liability insurance may protect you in this situation.

If you need assistance or advice regarding insurance, talk to your Property Manager.

*For example if there is a fire or flood you cause, the insurance company can bill you for the full amount of the repairs.

Rent must be paid weekly or fortnightly in advance by automatic payment or direct credit.

Rent must be paid out of one bank account only. We will complete an Automatic Payment (AP) form for you. Please complete your bank account details and return to your bank at least 3 days before your next payment is due. Please do not pay rent directly into our account over the counter at the bank as it can be very difficult to track rent payments without the correct information appearing on our bank statement. If we have to trace a payment that appears on our bank statement with no reference you will be charged for this. We do not accept regular rent payments at our office.

Summit Property Management has a Zero Tolerance Policy to Rent Arrears. If you fall behind in rent we will apply to the Tenancy Tribunal to resolve the matter. In all cases of rental arrears the provisions of the Residential Tenancies Act will apply. If you are having genuine difficulty paying rent it is in your best interest to notify us as soon as possible.

When should I pay my rent?

The rent is due each week or fortnight on the anniversary day of your start day. For example if your tenancy start day is a Friday then you need the rent to come out of your account on a Thursday night to be in our account on the Friday.

We ask that you report immediately any matters requiring repair or maintenance in order to avoid the risk of injury to either yourselves, your visitors or damage to the rented property. Minor repair and maintenance requests can be put in writing. This can be done by emailing your Property Manager, submitting a request here or otherwise call your Property Manager.

If an emergency repair is required, please call your Property Manager immediately. Any maintenance arranged by the tenant themselves will be at the tenant’s expense unless in extreme emergency. If you have a weekend emergency there will be a number to call at the end of your Property Manager’s mobile phone message. Please do not text your property manager after hours as texts are only responded to in business hours.

Click here for more important info and obligations

When notice is given by either landlord or tenant we will send out a check list for cleaning the property at the end of your tenancy. The Residential Tenancies Act states that a property must be left in a reasonably clean condition. All keys must be returned to the property manager during your check out at the property, or at our office by 9.00am of the following working day or else the locks may be changed and you will be held liable for the costs. We will then carry out the final inspection.

If there are issues regarding the condition in which the property has been returned we will call you however, please be aware that we do not have to give you access to the property to address any issues. Any cleaning or repairs will be deducted from your bond. 

If you want to seek independent advice on your legal rights and responsibilities as a tenant we suggest that you contact Tenancy Services which is an independent government body. They also have an excellent web site that will explain all aspects of Tenancy Law in New Zealand.

Web: www.tenancy.govt.nz/

Call:  0800 TENANCY (0800 83 62 62)

Email:  info@dbh.govt.nz