Keeping your home free from mould and dampness is beneficial to your health, and it’s tenants’ responsibility to keep the rental property well-aired and remove any mould straight away during a tenancy.
How to prevent mould?
Open windows and doors whenever you can and open the curtains during the day
Open windows and use extractor fans during cooking, bathing or drying clothes
Keep lids on when cooking
Wipe condensation off walls and windows
Hang washing outside and keep only a few plants inside
Gas heaters release water as the gas burns, use an electric heater instead
How to remove mould?
White vinegar is a cheap and effective way to clean mould. Mix vinegar with water (half and half) to make dilution on painted surfaces. Leave it for a few days then wipe off the dead mould with soap and water using a clean cloth.
You can also use diluted household bleach. Mix one part bleach with three parts water in a bucket of water.
sponge or cloth should be clean to reduce the risk of the mould spreading.
Wear gloves, eye protection and a safety mask when dealing with cleaning products and mould.
Finally, if you’re doing all the right things, and the house is still damp and mouldy, talk to your landlord to check for the hidden sources of dampness.
The most important thing of making correct recycling is to put the right stuff in the yellow bin.
This is a list of the right stuff to recycle. * Clean plastic bottles and containers numbered 1&2&5 They are things like soft drink bottles, milk bottles and family-sized yoghurt and ice cream containers. * Metals: aluminium cans, metal tins or aerosol cans * Clean glass: clear and coloured glass bottles or jars * Clean cardboard and paper: newspapers, flattened cardboard boxes And please also remember to put lids from bottles and containers in the red bin.
Please notice that you may receive a warning letter if waste was not separated from your yellow bin, and you may further lose your right to recycle if you continue to do so after 3-times warnings. The yellow bin will be confiscated by the Christchurch City Council. To get the bin back, you will have to pay $97.65 and sign a statement promising to abide by the rules. Your bin will be monitored to make sure you keep that promise.
From 31 August 2020, some common building projects no longer need a building consent, now could be the best time to build your carport faster and easier, and with lower costs.
Building consents will no longer be required for a number of projects, including:
Single-storey detached buildings (a maximum floor area of 30 square metres): sleepouts, sheds, greenhouses and other similar structures
Carports up to 40 square metres
Ground-floor awnings up to 30 square metres
Ground-floor verandas and porches up to 30 square metres
There are also many other projects that don’t need a building consent, such as:
* Permanent outdoor fireplaces or ovens * Flexible water storage bladders * Ground-mounted solar panel arrays * Small pipe supporting structures * Short-span (small) bridges * Single-storey pole sheds and hay barns in rural zones
An Auckland woman Melanie Griffith discovered the cockroach infestation after moving into the Māngere East property in February.
She raised the issue with her landlord, but the landlord did nothing about it.
Griffith had to call in pest control herself and paid $184 to them to get rid of the roaches, she also claimed her landlord promised to repair water leaks in the kitchen, bathroom and laundry, but never did.
Water damage began before Griffith moved in and continued thought out her tenancy. The kitchen bench was rotten and dangerous to be used because of water leaking. In the bathroom and laundry, leaking water had made the floors soft and unsafe.
The landlord did not address the maintenance issues and Griffith was not able to fully use the property, and the landlord even gave Griffith a 42-day notice and asked her to leave using the ground of selling.
The landlord also failed to lodge Griffith’s bond without any explanation, which is an “unlawful act” if not done within 23 working days of it being received.
Finally, Griffith was awarded a total of $2454.44 in damages and compensation.
The Residential Tenancies Amendment Bill was passed on August 5 2020, among a series of changes it introduces is a limit on how often rent can increase, from currently 6 months to 12 months, this will take effect at the end of the Covid-19 rent freeze.
It will provide tenants with more certainty and allow them to plan their finances in advance, as a result, landlords may issue more significant rent increases. Let’s keep a close eye on the rent changes over the coming months.
Landlords who fail to comply with the healthy home standard requirement, may suffer huge financial losses.
Earlier this year, a couple have been awarded more than $7000 in compensation after their rental was found to have serious mould. The tenants moved out of the property in south Auckland they had been living for years in last December after heavy black mould were found in most parts of . They claimed they had been unable to use four rooms in the six-bedroom, two-storey property for two whole years due to mould, included being unable to use the shower in a bathroom due to a leak and mould. The tribunal found the house was uninhabitable due to the mould from August to December 2019. Besides the heavy black mould and leaking problem, the property also has other issues like lack of smoke alarms, no ceiling insulation and unsafe decks. Finally the tenants were awarded a total of $7773.75 in compensation and a rent refund for the mould, smoke alarms, insulation and decks.
Since 1 July 2019, ceiling and underfloor insulation is compulsory in all rental homes, where it is reasonably practicable to install, under the Residential Tenancies Regulations 2016.
Insulation must meet the correct standards and be installed safely. Wall insulation is not compulsory. Under the 2016 regulations, existing insulation had to meet certain R-values (or ceiling insulation was less than 70mm thick) and be in reasonable condition, unless an exemption applies.
Insulation requirements changes
The healthy homes insulation standard increases the minimum standard for existing insulation. This means that some homes that did not require new insulation under the 2016 requirements may require a ceiling insulation ‘top-up’ or new underfloor insulation under the healthy homes standard.
The healthy homes insulation standard requires all rental homes to have insulation consistent with the 2008 building code or, for existing insulation it must be at least 120mm thick. If a home has less than 120mm of ceiling insulation, then this must be topped up, or new insulation installed in order to meet the healthy homes minimum R-value requirements.
Landlords who installed new insulation to meet the 2016 requirements will likely meet the healthy homes insulation standard, provided the insulation remains in a reasonable condition. This is because the minimum R-values for new insulation have not changed under the healthy homes insulation standard.
While new insulation is expected to last for decades, it’s a good idea to check that it is still in reasonable condition.
House prices have continued to surpass predictions for how they would perform post-COVID with median house prices across New Zealand increasing by 9.2% in June to $639,000, up from $585,000 in June 2019 and up from $620,000 (3.1%) in May 2020, according to the latest data from the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ), source of the most complete and accurate real estate data in New Zealand.
It is a brand new house with all kind of facilities. I enjoy my stay at this property. Rempstone property managers are very professional, passion, helpful. They provide weekly cleaning service and garden, so the house is very tidy.
Because Rempstone set some general rules, our kitchen is very tidy and clean too. I really enjoy staying with other flatemates in the house.
Wear gloves, eye protection and a safety mask when dealing with cleaning products and mould.
Single-storey detached buildings (a maximum floor area of 30 square metres): sleepouts, sheds, greenhouses and other similar structures
