Rent holiday
Question from Hayley updated on 22nd June 2016:
My property manager wants to install a new window in my bedroom. This will mean not being able to stay in my bedroom for at least a week. There are no other spare bedrooms in the house for me to stay in. Do I have to pay rent while I can't use my room? Does the property manager have to pay for a hotel?
Our expert Bernard Parker responded:
You haven’t said how many bedrooms are in the house - only that there are no other “spare” rooms. I will assume that your tenancy has only one bedroom. In such circumstances it is usual for the tenant to pay rent only once.
There are a couple of options... You can negotiate with the landlord or property manager to accommodate you in a motel for a few days at no cost to you, (in which case you continue to pay rent), or you could agree with the landlord that you move out and stay with a friend for those few days (in which case the landlord should be happy to give you a rent rebate (or rent “holiday”) for that time. An agreement between you is by far the better way to go.
Bernard is principal of Quinovic – Kapiti-Mana. Quinovic's outstanding people and systems provide the most professional, effective and reliable residential property management service in the NZ market for over 30 years.