Latest news with #EdMcKnight
RNZ News
05-08-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Quarter of all tenant applications to Tenancy Tribunal relate to concerns about Healthy Homes
Tenants most often sought the recovery of a bond, damages due to landlords breaching obligations and compliance with Healthy Home standards. (File photo) Photo: 123RF About a quarter of all tenant applications to the Tenancy Tribunal relate to concerns about Healthy Homes standards, but industry commentators say most landlords are meeting obligations. In its latest annual report, the Tenancy Tribunal said there were 29,309 applications made to it in 2024, up 14 percent compared to 2023 and up 43 percent compared to 2022. About three-quarters came from landlords and 66 percent of all claims related to rent arrears. Tenants most often sought the recovery of a bond, damages due to landlords breaching their obligations, or compliance with Healthy Homes standards. From July 1 this year, all rental properties had to comply with Healthy Homes rules , which set minimum standards for heating, ventilation and insulation. Tenants living in a home that is not compliant could take their concerns to the Tenancy Tribunal. The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, said in 2024, 1412 applications to the tribunal related to a Healthy Homes concerns. In the 2025 financial year, it was 1394. Economist Ed McKnight, from property investment firm Opes Partners, said this was a factor in about 29 percent of tenants' complaints. "That sounds high. But there are approximately 600,000 rental properties in New Zealand. "So only 0.2 percent of rental properties had a tenancy complaint regarding the Healthy Homes Standards." He said the numbers indicated property investors had taken the rules seriously. Matt Ball, a spokesperson for the NZ Property Investors Federation, said the number of applications should start to drop now that all rental properties were required to be covered. But Sarina Gibbon, general manager of the Auckland Property Investors Association, said there could be "systemic illiteracy" about the standards, and tenants might not feel they could push back. Sarina Gibbon, general manager of the Auckland Property Investors Association said tenants may feel as though they cannot push back against landlords. (File photo) Photo: Supplied "The power imbalance inherent in tenancy relationships is not abstract. It's basically a butter knife we put in tenants' hands and say, 'There, go fight your battles.' "I can go on and on about the systemic illiteracy; it is pretty endemic - I see it everywhere, among landlords, tenants, property managers, vendors, assessors, and real estate agents. There's a lot of bad [Healthy Homes] information in the marketplace and it is concerning how many landlords are relying on them as professional advice." Ball said the big increase in applications overall was probably driven in part by an increase in the number of people renting. "Active bonds increased from 374,298 at the start of 2020 to 424,383 at the end of 2024, a 13 percent increase. Over the same period tribunal applications went up 31 percent, so this is close to half of the reason." He said the tribunal now offered a wider range of options to resolve disputes, which were faster and cheaper than a full hearing and could make it more likely that people would lodge an application. "For example, both fast-track resolution and mediation provide a faster way to resolve a dispute and are increasingly used by both parties. It's interesting to note that the percentage of applications which actually required a hearing fell from 50 percent in 2020 to 44 percent in 2024." Overall, in 2024, tribunal hearings for residential tenancy cases were conducted on average just under 10 weeks after filing. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
31-07-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Property investors: It's not time to break up yet
Investors buying older properties might do them up which leads to economic activity in terms of providing work for builders and trades people, Jeremy Williamson says. Photo: RNZ / REECE BAKER Calls for New Zealanders to break up with property investment and focus instead on investing in more productive assets such as growth companies are missing the point, says an economist at one property investment firm. Jeremy Williamson, head of private wealth and markets at Craigs Investment Partners, said there was momentum building for a move away from the country's "love affair with property and property investing". "New Zealand is always going to have an affinity with property investment but there are so many benefits for us as a country if we can turn the dial away from it, into more productive parts of the economy." He pointed to the returns that were possible from investing in the sharemarket. "If you put $100 into a New Zealand house 30 years ago it would be worth nearly $600. If you put it in New Zealand shares, it would be $1100." But Ed McKnight, property economist at Opes Partners, said that was ignoring the power of leverage. Because people only put a deposit in to the purchase of a property, and borrow the rest, it can mean bigger returns. "If you compare a standard property index or prices to shares, shares increase in value faster than houses. But houses can help you grow your wealth faster than shares… it comes down to the debt, the mortgage. "It's a double-edged sword. Whenever you use a mortgage to invest, whether in a house or business it makes your returns larger, which can either be good if the value increases, or it can be bad if the value decreases. "That's the reason why, if you put a 20 percent deposit into a house and your house value goes down by 20 percent you've lost your entire deposit at least on paper until the asset recovers in price. "But if you put 20 percent into a house and the value goes up 20 percent, you've doubled your money. I call it the mortgage magnifier effect. The bigger the mortgage you use, the larger your return compared to the market return. "So property doesn't go up in value as fast but it can be a better wealth builder because you can borrow against it." He said it was also not accurate to say that property was not a productive investment. While it would not grow the economy if an investor bought a house and sat on it, he said, people who were buying new were encouraging economic activity. "The builder or developer is taking an older house and building a new one, it drives the economy forward. You have people building houses and nice, new, warm dry homes for tenants. "Even if you are buying old properties, many investors do them up. That's economic activity, taking something that might be a bit run down and you're improving the quality of the New Zealand housing stock, you're spending money at Bunnings or Mitre 10, it means plumbers and electricians get jobs. It's not true to say property investors don't add anything to the economy." He said simply buying and selling existing shares did not add to the economy, either. "Because buying a share in a company doesn't mean that the money goes to the company for investment. If you buy a share in NZME, the money goes to the person I bought the share off, not the company itself. "Even in IPOs the money sometimes goes to the founders. Only a small fraction of My Food Bag's IPO was earmarked for investment. A large part went to paying out the founders. So share investments aren't always as 'productive' as the average reader might think. "Though if more people invest in shares, then there is more money available when companies do raise money for further investment. Similarly, property is more productive than non-property people give it credit for. Many investors don't just buy and sell houses. They build new ones, or do them up. This improves the housing stock in New Zealand and does contribute to higher GDP and a higher standard of living." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
16-06-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
House sellers 'keen to move on' driving increase in sales
For Sale Sign Photo: RNZ / Angus Dreaver More houses changed hands in May, but for generally lower prices, and buyers are taking their time about their decisions, the Real Estate Institute (REINZ) says. REINZ data shows that, at a national level, the median house price dropped 0.9 percent year-on-year in May, to $763,000. Auckland's price dropped 3.5 percent. Excluding the biggest city, the median price was stable. The number of properties sold rose 8.9 percent compared to a year earlier, to 7166. Northland had the highest increase in sales count, up 33.3 percent year-on-year, from 171 to 228 sales. Tasman followed with a 29.7 percent year-on-year increase, from 64 to 83 sales. Canterbury had the largest number of properties sold in any May month since 2006 and Tasman since 2013. Listings were up almost 3 percent. The median number of days to sell properties lifted by three to 47. REINZ said this reflected buyer caution. "Purchasers are taking longer to commit, which local agents suggest could be due to a lack of buyer urgency and the fact that buyers have time to find a property that best suits them." The institute's house price index, which is designed to smooth out variation caused by the make-up of sales, was up 0.1 percent year-on-year and down 0.6 percent compared to April. Ed McKnight, property economist at Opes Partners, said there were signs of increasing demand and supply in the market. "Lower interest rates are drawing more people into the market. But the number of property listings is high. That's in part because of Kiwis moving overseas and selling up in New Zealand. "Because if both demand goes up you get more sales and higher prices. If supply goes up you get more sales and lower prices. "So the pricing effects are cancelling each other out and sales are recovering well from the bottom of the market." Kelvin Davidson, chief economist at Cotality, said sellers had already been willing to meet the market. the number of deals had returned to normal for this time of year after a long period of sluggishness. "At face value, another rise in sales alongside a continued flat patch for prices would add to the case for thinking that more sellers who have sitting on the market for a while are now just keen to move on. "That said, there's nothing to suggest sellers are capitulating; yes, there's a lot of listings and buyers still have the upper hand, but I'd say most vendors are still willing to be patient." Prices remain 15.8 percent below their previous peak.
RNZ News
29-05-2025
- Entertainment
- RNZ News
The Panel with Verity Johnson and Ed McKnight (Part 2)
national about 1 hour ago Tonight on The Panel, Wallace Chapman is joined by panellists Verity Johnson and Ed McKnight. They discuss the difficulty in finding work after 50, driving etiquette through roundabouts, and iconic Kiwi music as the 2025 Aotearoa Music Awards kicks off. Tags: To embed this content on your own webpage, cut and paste the following: See terms of use.
RNZ News
14-05-2025
- Automotive
- RNZ News
The Panel with Ed McKnight & Niki Bezzant (Part 2)
food life and society about 1 hour ago Tonight on The Panel, Wallace Chapman is joined by panellists Ed McKnight & Niki Bezzant. The trio discuss why Cantabrians still love the car. After all the Guinea Pig chat on yesterday's Guinea Pig show we speak to a Cavy professional. Plus... Is dripping poised for a return? Ed McKnight is an economist at Opes Partners & host of the 'Property Academy Podcast' Niki Bezzant is a journalist and author
