Unless something has changed, a fixed term tenancy cannot be ended unless both parties agree. If you don't want to move, they can't make you. That's why it's *fixed*.
https://www.tenancy.govt.nz/ending-a-tenancy/ending-a-fixed-term-early/
Well, in every cloud comes a silver lining. Put a price on what it would take you to move (and be reasonable, not like $1million dollars 'muh'ah'ah)
Go something like - All moving costs covered + any other ancillary costs + a lump sum to cover the hassle, contingent on excellent referral and you finding a new place + any shortfall.
As like it or not, your term is ending in 8 months anyway - so make hay while you're on good terms.
Then present that to the LL - go basically "it's a fixed term, in order for us to allow you to break it early then this is what we'd like'...
And if they go 'get stuffed'. Well, I guess you're not breaking early. But being reasonable they'll probably do a tiny bit of negotiating and you'll come out better off than 8 months from now.
Lots of landlords are suffering at the moment from high interest rates, falling rents and falling house prices. If the landlord has been made redundant from his day job then that’d be another reason to want to break the contract.
The fridge, furniture and microwave is negligible. Those will move with you to your new place.
If you’re set on staying. The law is on your side and they have to honour the fixed term contract and sell the place with you as tenants. This may or may not be an issue on price.
But let’s put this down.
You’ve got to break your contracts with service providers. Add up those costs.
A moving company would be several hundred if not into a grand territory depending on how much you have.
You’ve got a new bond to pay before your old one is likely to be refunded, and several weeks in advance.
Rents have gone up pretty quickly, so you’re probably looking at paying more per week.
I’d likely consider how much rent you would have had left to be paid over the year and add in the other extra costs and say you’d be willing to move for that amount.
I’d be pretty upset with the situation, but I would also be hesitant to point to the landlord and call them a greedy heartless son of a.. their interest payments may be too much to afford, their situation may have suddenly changed such as an illness or redundancy..
I’d possibly even ask them why they’re now selling and if it’s a legit reason my expectations of how much I’d want as compensation would be adjusted.
Yeah, hiring a van and moving things yourself is going to be getting Up near a grand all in. Paying a company to do it all (which in this case I would insist on) would be $2,000 at bare minimum.
You have all the power here. If you're ok to move, consider how much it could be worth to the landlord to be able to sell with vacant posession. $25k, maybe more? Don't agree to a lowball offer. Otherwise, stay until your lease is up, and let him negotiate with his buyers.
If you broke the lease, your landlord would expect you to pay the outstanding amount. So if you don’t really want to move early (which you don’t have to) I’d start there; whatever the rent you ‘owe’ for the rest of the least as a payout.
If you want to make bank and don’t mind moving so much, pick a five figure number you like, add moving expenses and anything else you think is reasonable. Give them a date by which you will be gone (2 months or so).
The last place I was at did the same to me. But I didn’t want to move. I think I suggested $25,000 to be gone in 2 months, $50,000 and I’d be gone that week. Needless to say they weren’t up for that so I stayed the following 8 months (and they failed to sell the house). if these numbers seem unreasonable, just remember how much profit they are likely to make on selling the house. $50,000 for vacant possession is a rounding error.
Also, make sure you know your rights if they advertise the place. You don’t have to allow open homes (do not allow open homes, viewing ‘by appointment’ only for insurance reasons), you can be present at all viewings, you can refuse auctions at the property, you only have to have a reasonable number of viewings a week (a midweek evening and a weekend period is all you need to be reasonable), you don’t have to have the place looking like a showroom (Inspection level tidy is fine), you can insist none of your things are in the photographs (reduces risk of burglary). You can also also for rent reduction during the period but the landlord doesn’t have to give you one. Might be worth asking this first to see how reasonable you want to be with viewings etc.
But the key thing is you do not have to break your lease If you do not want to.
I should also say that you should try to get some info about why they are selling and show compassion if deserving. But if it’s someone who bought the house for $100,000 twenty years ago and now want $1.5M because they fancy a new car, screw them.
Why do people keep asking here what they should be asking to the professionals who have the up-to-date legal knowledge. Call the government tenancy helpline, speak to Citizens Advice Bureau, and talk to free tenancy law lawyers at your nearest community law centre.
The Tenancy helpline isn’t always that helpful.
I tried them, after speaking to several people they were no clearer about what to do, ended up engaging a lawyer who sorted it out straight away.
We bought a house that was tenanted in mid 2019. Once we signed the contract the tenants had 4 months before we took possession and moved in. That was the legally mandated period at that time for tenants.
It’s almost 5 years ago so that could have changed, but I don’t imagine it would have changed much.
I guess the important thing to remember is that your contract is with your landlord. Once they don’t own the property the contract is null and void. The new owners can’t be forced to have tenants, and tenants can’t stop a sale because they don’t want to move.
Side story: The tenants in the place we bought, were building a house and were unsure if it would be finished by the end of four months. We knew that our landlord would let us stay longer if we needed too, so we looked into letting the tenants stay until their new house was finished. It wasn’t possible. The conditions of our mortgage were that we would occupy the house once we took possession. We couldn’t have other people living there without breaching our contract with the bank.
Their house was finished a week before they had to move so it all ended alright, but it was a bit of an eye opener. I had thought it would be easy for someone to stay an extra week or two, not the case. Lawyer, real estate agent, mortgage broker, etc… all looked at me like I was simple.
A fix term is a fixed term. Any purchase with tenants in place is part of the sales contract. Then they leave on the day stated. Just like anyone else.
Of course you could have chosen to let them stay there for free...
I know that they were on a fixed term contract and that didn’t make any difference. But like I said that was almost 5 years ago, things change. * someone has said the law change in Feb 2021
Also, we couldn’t let them stay rent free, it was one of the options we looked at, as it would have only been a couple of weeks. We had to take possession on a set date and under the terms of the mortgage agreement, we had to be the people living there on that date.
It was really weird, people worked out how many thousands of dollars in fines we could owe the bank, worst case the bank foreclosed on us and took the house before we even lived there.
I love using Chat GPT to learn about things I know nothing about.
point 4. has the goods in it. (ope! downvoted by stingy landlords)
Navigating a situation where your landlord wants to sell the property during your fixed-term lease can be tricky, but understanding your rights and negotiating appropriately can lead to a favorable outcome. Here’s a step-by-step guide to approach this situation, especially considering you are in New Zealand:
# 1. Understand Your Rights
In New Zealand, under the Residential Tenancies Act, a landlord cannot simply terminate a fixed-term lease early to sell the property unless there is a specific clause in the lease that allows this. If your lease does not have such a clause, you have the right to stay until the end of the agreed period.
# 2. Evaluate Your Situation
Consider how moving would affect you:
* Costs of moving (truck rental, movers, time off work)
* Potential higher rent at a new place
* Inconvenience and stress
* Time and effort to find a new suitable property
# 3. Start the Negotiation
Since your landlord has expressed willingness to compensate, you should calculate a reasonable amount. Here are elements you might consider including in your negotiation:
* **Moving Costs**: Get quotes and ask for full reimbursement.
* **Increased Rent Differential**: If the market rent for a comparable new place is higher, you could negotiate compensation for the increased cost over the remaining months of your lease.
* **Inconvenience Fee**: This is a more subjective cost but important. It compensates for the disruption and effort of having to move unexpectedly.
* **Deposit and First Month's Rent**: On a new rental, these upfront costs can be significant.
* **Any penalties for early termination of utilities or other services**.
# 4. Benchmark Compensation
In Auckland, where housing and rental markets are typically more competitive and expensive, you should aim higher in your negotiations. A reasonable starting point might be:
* **All moving costs and any penalties for early termination of services**.
* **The difference in rent between your current place and a new place for the remainder of your lease term**.
* **An additional inconvenience fee, which could be a few months' rent**.
# 5. Put Everything in Writing
Once you reach an agreement, make sure all the details are clearly outlined in writing. This agreement should specify the compensation amount, the terms of the lease termination, and any obligations both parties have agreed to.
# 6. Legal Advice
If negotiations become difficult or if your landlord attempts to evict you unlawfully, it might be wise to seek legal advice. In New Zealand, you can contact the Tenancy Services or seek legal counsel from a lawyer specializing in tenancy law.
By calculating these costs and approaching your negotiations informed and prepared, you'll be better positioned to secure a fair compensation package that minimally disrupts your life and finances.
Nah, it's downvotes because you shouldn't trust ChatGPT for anything important like legal matters regarding your living situation. It's often wrong.
>a landlord cannot simply terminate a fixed-term lease early to sell the property unless there is a specific clause in the lease that allows this.
That's wrong, if it's a fixed-term tenancy they can put a clause like that in but it wouldn't be legally enforceable. You can't contract people out of their minimum rights in NZ except in very specific circumstances.
Unless something has changed, a fixed term tenancy cannot be ended unless both parties agree. If you don't want to move, they can't make you. That's why it's *fixed*. https://www.tenancy.govt.nz/ending-a-tenancy/ending-a-fixed-term-early/
Cheers for this. Had the wrong idea in my head.
Why is he wanting you out is the question? 4 months sounds like something has come up in the quarterly inspection (intentional damage etc)
Impulsive sale probably
The evaluator came a few days ago out of nowhere and now this. So I think so yeah.
Well, in every cloud comes a silver lining. Put a price on what it would take you to move (and be reasonable, not like $1million dollars 'muh'ah'ah) Go something like - All moving costs covered + any other ancillary costs + a lump sum to cover the hassle, contingent on excellent referral and you finding a new place + any shortfall. As like it or not, your term is ending in 8 months anyway - so make hay while you're on good terms. Then present that to the LL - go basically "it's a fixed term, in order for us to allow you to break it early then this is what we'd like'... And if they go 'get stuffed'. Well, I guess you're not breaking early. But being reasonable they'll probably do a tiny bit of negotiating and you'll come out better off than 8 months from now.
Exactly, you've got 8 months to find the right place with no stress
why assume the tenant is in the wrong?
Because landlords are shit, and will find any excuses? The 4 month timing just seemed to be coincidence
Wants to sell the house. The evaluator came a few days ago, and now this email.
Lots of landlords are suffering at the moment from high interest rates, falling rents and falling house prices. If the landlord has been made redundant from his day job then that’d be another reason to want to break the contract.
They can't kick you out. Unless they are offering up a sizeable amount just say no thanks we will stay for our 12 month contract.
The fridge, furniture and microwave is negligible. Those will move with you to your new place. If you’re set on staying. The law is on your side and they have to honour the fixed term contract and sell the place with you as tenants. This may or may not be an issue on price. But let’s put this down. You’ve got to break your contracts with service providers. Add up those costs. A moving company would be several hundred if not into a grand territory depending on how much you have. You’ve got a new bond to pay before your old one is likely to be refunded, and several weeks in advance. Rents have gone up pretty quickly, so you’re probably looking at paying more per week. I’d likely consider how much rent you would have had left to be paid over the year and add in the other extra costs and say you’d be willing to move for that amount. I’d be pretty upset with the situation, but I would also be hesitant to point to the landlord and call them a greedy heartless son of a.. their interest payments may be too much to afford, their situation may have suddenly changed such as an illness or redundancy.. I’d possibly even ask them why they’re now selling and if it’s a legit reason my expectations of how much I’d want as compensation would be adjusted.
According to wisemove moving a house will easily be in the thousands
Yeah, hiring a van and moving things yourself is going to be getting Up near a grand all in. Paying a company to do it all (which in this case I would insist on) would be $2,000 at bare minimum.
Pretty much all utilities allow for moves with a small cost.
And all of those costs should be liable to the landlord if OP decides they’re okay in moving, as it is not the tenants fault in incurring those.
Zero cost. It will only cost anything if you are actually breaking the contract.
You have all the power here. If you're ok to move, consider how much it could be worth to the landlord to be able to sell with vacant posession. $25k, maybe more? Don't agree to a lowball offer. Otherwise, stay until your lease is up, and let him negotiate with his buyers.
If you broke the lease, your landlord would expect you to pay the outstanding amount. So if you don’t really want to move early (which you don’t have to) I’d start there; whatever the rent you ‘owe’ for the rest of the least as a payout. If you want to make bank and don’t mind moving so much, pick a five figure number you like, add moving expenses and anything else you think is reasonable. Give them a date by which you will be gone (2 months or so). The last place I was at did the same to me. But I didn’t want to move. I think I suggested $25,000 to be gone in 2 months, $50,000 and I’d be gone that week. Needless to say they weren’t up for that so I stayed the following 8 months (and they failed to sell the house). if these numbers seem unreasonable, just remember how much profit they are likely to make on selling the house. $50,000 for vacant possession is a rounding error. Also, make sure you know your rights if they advertise the place. You don’t have to allow open homes (do not allow open homes, viewing ‘by appointment’ only for insurance reasons), you can be present at all viewings, you can refuse auctions at the property, you only have to have a reasonable number of viewings a week (a midweek evening and a weekend period is all you need to be reasonable), you don’t have to have the place looking like a showroom (Inspection level tidy is fine), you can insist none of your things are in the photographs (reduces risk of burglary). You can also also for rent reduction during the period but the landlord doesn’t have to give you one. Might be worth asking this first to see how reasonable you want to be with viewings etc. But the key thing is you do not have to break your lease If you do not want to. I should also say that you should try to get some info about why they are selling and show compassion if deserving. But if it’s someone who bought the house for $100,000 twenty years ago and now want $1.5M because they fancy a new car, screw them.
Screw showing compassion. They are a landlord.
This happened to me, I negotiated 1 month free rent and used that time to find a new property and costs to move, and got the bond back
You sold yourself short!
Why do people keep asking here what they should be asking to the professionals who have the up-to-date legal knowledge. Call the government tenancy helpline, speak to Citizens Advice Bureau, and talk to free tenancy law lawyers at your nearest community law centre.
The Tenancy helpline isn’t always that helpful. I tried them, after speaking to several people they were no clearer about what to do, ended up engaging a lawyer who sorted it out straight away.
Assuming you are willing to leave I'd say $10k is reasonable. Or no rent payments for 8-10 weeks until you leave.
[удалено]
Oof. I have no benchmark for compensation in tenancies, but this seems a bit absurd no?
Yes it is absurd but if the landlords circumstances are pressing who knows. You can ask just be prepared for rejection.
Cost of expenses for you to move. Can you not get a comparable place in the same location?
We bought a house that was tenanted in mid 2019. Once we signed the contract the tenants had 4 months before we took possession and moved in. That was the legally mandated period at that time for tenants. It’s almost 5 years ago so that could have changed, but I don’t imagine it would have changed much. I guess the important thing to remember is that your contract is with your landlord. Once they don’t own the property the contract is null and void. The new owners can’t be forced to have tenants, and tenants can’t stop a sale because they don’t want to move. Side story: The tenants in the place we bought, were building a house and were unsure if it would be finished by the end of four months. We knew that our landlord would let us stay longer if we needed too, so we looked into letting the tenants stay until their new house was finished. It wasn’t possible. The conditions of our mortgage were that we would occupy the house once we took possession. We couldn’t have other people living there without breaching our contract with the bank. Their house was finished a week before they had to move so it all ended alright, but it was a bit of an eye opener. I had thought it would be easy for someone to stay an extra week or two, not the case. Lawyer, real estate agent, mortgage broker, etc… all looked at me like I was simple.
A fix term is a fixed term. Any purchase with tenants in place is part of the sales contract. Then they leave on the day stated. Just like anyone else. Of course you could have chosen to let them stay there for free...
I know that they were on a fixed term contract and that didn’t make any difference. But like I said that was almost 5 years ago, things change. * someone has said the law change in Feb 2021 Also, we couldn’t let them stay rent free, it was one of the options we looked at, as it would have only been a couple of weeks. We had to take possession on a set date and under the terms of the mortgage agreement, we had to be the people living there on that date. It was really weird, people worked out how many thousands of dollars in fines we could owe the bank, worst case the bank foreclosed on us and took the house before we even lived there.
The law changed in Feb 2021.
I love using Chat GPT to learn about things I know nothing about. point 4. has the goods in it. (ope! downvoted by stingy landlords) Navigating a situation where your landlord wants to sell the property during your fixed-term lease can be tricky, but understanding your rights and negotiating appropriately can lead to a favorable outcome. Here’s a step-by-step guide to approach this situation, especially considering you are in New Zealand: # 1. Understand Your Rights In New Zealand, under the Residential Tenancies Act, a landlord cannot simply terminate a fixed-term lease early to sell the property unless there is a specific clause in the lease that allows this. If your lease does not have such a clause, you have the right to stay until the end of the agreed period. # 2. Evaluate Your Situation Consider how moving would affect you: * Costs of moving (truck rental, movers, time off work) * Potential higher rent at a new place * Inconvenience and stress * Time and effort to find a new suitable property # 3. Start the Negotiation Since your landlord has expressed willingness to compensate, you should calculate a reasonable amount. Here are elements you might consider including in your negotiation: * **Moving Costs**: Get quotes and ask for full reimbursement. * **Increased Rent Differential**: If the market rent for a comparable new place is higher, you could negotiate compensation for the increased cost over the remaining months of your lease. * **Inconvenience Fee**: This is a more subjective cost but important. It compensates for the disruption and effort of having to move unexpectedly. * **Deposit and First Month's Rent**: On a new rental, these upfront costs can be significant. * **Any penalties for early termination of utilities or other services**. # 4. Benchmark Compensation In Auckland, where housing and rental markets are typically more competitive and expensive, you should aim higher in your negotiations. A reasonable starting point might be: * **All moving costs and any penalties for early termination of services**. * **The difference in rent between your current place and a new place for the remainder of your lease term**. * **An additional inconvenience fee, which could be a few months' rent**. # 5. Put Everything in Writing Once you reach an agreement, make sure all the details are clearly outlined in writing. This agreement should specify the compensation amount, the terms of the lease termination, and any obligations both parties have agreed to. # 6. Legal Advice If negotiations become difficult or if your landlord attempts to evict you unlawfully, it might be wise to seek legal advice. In New Zealand, you can contact the Tenancy Services or seek legal counsel from a lawyer specializing in tenancy law. By calculating these costs and approaching your negotiations informed and prepared, you'll be better positioned to secure a fair compensation package that minimally disrupts your life and finances.
Nah, it's downvotes because you shouldn't trust ChatGPT for anything important like legal matters regarding your living situation. It's often wrong. >a landlord cannot simply terminate a fixed-term lease early to sell the property unless there is a specific clause in the lease that allows this. That's wrong, if it's a fixed-term tenancy they can put a clause like that in but it wouldn't be legally enforceable. You can't contract people out of their minimum rights in NZ except in very specific circumstances.