Pet bonds to make renting while owning animals easier
The Government will legislate to allow landlords to ask prospective tenants to put up an additional amount in bond for damage caused by a pet.
Dubbed a “pet bond”, the idea is to encourage landlords to take a risk in allowing tenants with pets to take a tenancy because they know any damage caused by a pet would be recoverable.
Damage caused by pets is covered by the current bond regime, but the amount of bond that can be demanded is capped at four weeks’ rent. Many landlords flat out refuse to allow pets in their rentals. The change will allow landlords to set a pet bond of a maximum of two weeks’ rent.
Weird policy win for ACT that now forces renters with pets to pay a pet bond. Renters don’t have enough to pay for the rents, where the hell they find the extra money for a pet bond is beyond me.
So landlords get their tax loop holes back, won’t have to do a damned thing for Healthy Homes AND they get the power to kick tenants out for no reason, but you might get the chance to pay extra for your pet?
This is for the Landlord’s benefit, not the tenant!
Before this, Landlord’s couldn’t demand a pet bond, now they can!
Yay, MORE money your bloody landlord can charge now!
This is naked vandalism of the egalitarian state.
The new Government may as well dig up Michael Joseph Savage’s dead corpse and take photos of Winston posing with his remains as David skull fucks it.
Increasingly having independent opinion in a mainstream media environment which mostly echo one another has become more important than ever, so if you value having an independent voice – please donate here.
If you can’t contribute but want to help, please always feel free to share our blogs on social media.
Don’t have pets if you can’t afford a pet bond or struggling to pay rent! I only have one rental property and won’t let anyone rent it if they have a pet, even if a pet bond were available.
Yes, Zelda and many landlords do this however this is a gimmick from two clowns.
Yes, Covid, it’s a gimmick alright, and a rather childish one.
When I first read about this policy, my first reaction was this was drawn up by the Gestapo, but then it is a National government.
As tax payers and landlords of this dog of a government, I give them one term before we kick them out or should we just use the new policy and give them a 90-day ‘no cause’ termination.
Car sales speak Bishop hyping it as a bonus for tenants when it fact it’s a pot of gold for landlords.
Median rent: $620
Property Bond : $ 2480
Pet Bond : $1240
Rent up front plus bonds = a whopping $4960 !
But for landlords :- That’s $3720 dollars towards replacing the whole carpet for the cat throwing up once in a single spot when the whole carpet was already dilapidated from wear and tear and not able to be otherwise claimed against a bond.
I digress.
If I rent a property can the landlord stop me having a vege garden?
Peter, better still, I have no pets, I demand a discount!
I guess that would depend on the property, if it is like most of the rentals I have seen you might get enough room for a few pot plants but there will be no space for a potato patch or to grow pumpkins. There are videos of people growing potatoes in a bucket although I don’t know how successful they are.
Of course! Imagine the impact that mass vegetable gardening could have on Woolstuffs and Foodworths, those two paragons of capitalist excellence.
Technically no. However they may require you to restore the garden to its original configuration if they deem your modifications are not enhancing the properties. Failing to do that may cost you your bond. If you put in some nice raised gardens, that didn’t block access or create other issues, that would probably be fine. Best to have a conversation with your landlord and be prepared to sell them on the idea, before you do anything major.
If you ploughed up the front lawn to grow corn or whatever, that might cause some issues.
What’s the point of a pet bond if you live in a concrete box barely larger than a carpark and pay more than half your income for the privilege?
Just heard on news that the necessary legislation won’t be in force until late 2025. If it takes that long for a piss ant piece of legislation like this how the fuck are we going to get new roads built.
These guys are full of shit.
Stupid fucks cancelled ferries and now want to build a tunnel under Wellington to save a imaginary 15 minutes on a commute across town. How many ferries could we buy for that.
If you cannot afford rent how do you afford a pet .Proper care of pets requires a lot of money . Two weeks rent would not cover most damaged caused by pets .
There a a few bad landlords like there is a few bad tenants but the average landlord is a hard working person trying to secure a retirement fund so I do not understand the hatred shown to them .Even under Labour there is never going to be enough state houses for all those unwilling or unable to buy a home.
Our neighbours who were recently evicted because they stopped paying their rent, allowed their dog to urinate throughout the carpeted house and to turn the backyard into a minefield of faeces, so their bond wouldn’t have covered the costs by a large margin.
If you cannot afford rent how do you afford a pet .Proper care of pets requires a lot of money . Two weeks rent would not cover most damaged caused by pets .
There a a few bad landlords like there is a few bad tenants but the average landlord is a hard working person trying to secure a retirement fund so I do not understand the hatred shown to them .Even under Labour there is never going to be enough state houses for all those unwilling or unable to buy a home.
They are stealing other people’s retirement through their high rents to pay for theirs. People cannot even buy food with rents being so high.
Your photo caption is appropriate, to see those clowns on the news with an attitude of thinking they were doing something special just demonstrates how far out of touch with reality they actually are.
Martyn, thanks for just telling it like it is. I wish you were more vocal in the media, your messaging is very clear, crisp and just bursts the bubble in anything National does. We need more of your honesty in the media.
Looking at those two bozos I have an idea – MPs should put up a bond before we allow them to be let loose on us. I remember years ago an agent in Oz who was so pernickety and ferocious about marks, even though there used to be a clause allowing for wear and tear, normal with ordinary use. What they demand in loony-tunes NZ now I wouldn’t know. But the political thinking would go, that would be good for my rental places. Sort of like ‘the road up to my beach cottage needs to be fixed before summer’ and I must see what needs to be done in the area.
We are a bit like chooks in pollies’ eyes; but what happens when we go off the lay hey?
WINZ will only pay/loan 4 weeks bond max so i guess this locks out those dirty freeloading bludgers from the rental market. Another great win for ACT. (sarcasm)
Just another dopey sop to the voters. Folk who can’t afford to buy a place to call home, or meat and fresh nutritious food, cannot afford to buy pet food, let alone pay vet and various animal compliance costs. These two jerks need to smarten up, which is much harder to do than the dumbing down which they constantly expect we the punters to engage in.
Insurance companies don’t like pet damage especially when they ruin a carpet by peeing on it etc.
Pit balls are needed as guard dogs I’m most Street s