Six factors Kiwi landlords fear the most: new survey

Landlords have six main fears for the future. Photo/Doug Sherring

Capital gains tax on rental property, falling house prices and Government demands to improve their places are kiwi landlords' top fears, according to a new survey out this week.

Auckland-based property managers Crockers released the findings of its regular survey which gauges investment sentiments and landlords' issues.

Mortgage lending restrictions, lower net migration along with slowing population growth and interest rates were the next most-feared factors.

"Respondents were also asked which factors they expected to have an impact on residential property investment activity over the next five years.

Given the recent media activity, it is not surprising to see that 81 per cent of respondents believe that the capital gains tax would have an impact on residential property investment activity while falling house prices came in at almost half of this (43 per cent)," the survey said.

Half the landlords expect house prices to fall in the next 12 months, while 33 per cent said prices would either not change or rise by up to 5 per cent, it said.

The survey, which Crockers said had answers from "hundreds" of landlords also examined where they intend to buy and found 51 per cent think Auckland best, 33 per cent favour the Waikato and 25 per cent Northland.

Crocker's Auckland rental property investment Index and the Auckland rental property performance Index dropped due to a rise in the number of investors intending to sell and those who believe the Auckland rental property performance will worsen.

Average Auckland three-bedroom home rents dropped from $636/week in December to $588 week in January, Crockers found.

Average Auckland two-bedroom home rents fell from $507/week in December to $505/week in January.

The Government is yet to respond to the Tax Working Group recommendations but Dominick Stevens, Westpac's chief economist, favours CGT on rentals because he says it's fair.

Herald columnist Mary Holm has said not to panic on the proposed tax on the second home. The Tax Working Group which favours CGT on rentals says people's own homes should be exempt.

Holm says the proposed tax would apply to all second homes, regardless of when they were bought would be only on the gain made after what the working group is calling Valuation Day, on April 1, 2021.

The new Housing and Urban Development Ministry says minimum requirements for rental properties will be set for heating, insulation, ventilation, moisture ingress and drainage and draught stopping.

"Ensuring everyone has a warm and dry rental home is a priority to improving the wellbeing of New Zealanders and their families. Nearly 600,000 households rent in New Zealand and research tells us that NZ's rental housing is of poorer quality than owner-occupied homes," the ministry says.

Economists are not expecting any immediate interest rate rises and in fact banks have been lowering rates to historically new lows in New Zealand lately.