Property manager slammed for discriminatory advice

Legislation prohibits landlords from discrimination on the basis of you or intellectual disability. Photo / 123RF

An Auckland property management company has backtracked after advising landlords that renting to young people and the intellectually disabled was a "fatal mistake".

Clarke Group Property Management shared the advice in a blog post on its website titled "15 Fatal Mistakes New Zealand Landlords Make When Signing a Tenancy Agreement".

Amongst other tips for landlords, the firm advised: "... many savvy landlords choose to avoid underaged tenants given that they are new to renting, do not have experience taking care of a property, and are known for being fond of parties and loud music. The likelihood of damage and noise complaints increases when you are renting to an underaged tenant".

In New Zealand anyone over the age of 18 can sign a tenancy agreement and it is considered unlawful for landlords to discriminate based on age.

Another "fatal mistake" noted was "signing a tenancy agreement with a mentally disabled person", with the blog post going on to state that "complications can arise from the decision to rent to a mentally disabled person, as their mental state can often be unpredictable".

Alongside this advice, the blog provided links to the Human Rights Act and noted that it is unlawful for a landlord to discriminate against an individual based on their intellectual disability.

Screenshot from the original blog posting.

Property lawyer Joanna Pidgeon of Pidgeon Law told the Herald that any tenants following this advice could find themselves facing censure.

"This blog is making gross generalisations about potential tenants in relation to their ability to be a good tenant or not purely because of their age, or whether they have mental disabilities. This is both unfair and in breach of tenants' human rights," Pidgeon said.

Pidgeon said that Kiwis with intellectual disabilities had the potential to be "great tenants" and that every tenancy application should be assessed on its own merits.

As far as a prospective tenant's youth, Pidgeon noted that tenants can cause damage or have loud parties at any age.

"Housing is a human right, and it is important that landlords comply with New Zealand legislation or they may face a complaint and face consequences of breaching legislation.

"Landlords should always keep an open mind and deal with each tenancy application on its merits, not on prejudice."

In a statement, Disability Rights Commissioner Paula Tesoriero told the Herald she was hugely disappointed at the stereotypes and discriminatory attitudes expressed in the blog.

"These sorts of generalisations create unfair barriers for people who have the same right to be considered as tenants as anyone else in a very difficult housing market."

She advised that anyone who considers they have been discriminated against in relation to seeking a tenancy may complain to the Human Rights Commission or Tenancy Services.

A spokesperson for the firm said the article, which was online until they were contacted by the media, was "obviously not written by us" and had "slipped through the cracks".

They said that it did not reflect the advice they gave to landlords and that they work entirely within the NZ Residential Tenancies Act.

They added that the removed blog post would be amended and noted that "in hindsight, the article clearly should have been more thoroughly reviewed before going live".