Rent Increases in NZ: The Rules, Notice Periods and How Often You Can Raise Rent

Rent increases are one of the most commonly misunderstood parts of the Residential Tenancies Act, and one of the easiest places for a landlord to make a mistake that invalidates the increase entirely.

The rules in short: rent can be increased no more than once every 12 months. You must give the tenant at least 60 days’ written notice before the increase takes effect. The notice must be in writing, must state the new rent and the date it starts, and must be properly served. For a fixed-term tenancy, the agreement itself must allow for an increase. There is no cap on the amount, but a tenant can challenge a rent that is substantially above market rent for comparable properties.

Get any of those elements wrong and the increase is invalid, which means the tenant continues paying the old rent and you start the 60 day clock again.

How often you can increase the rent

Rent can only be increased once every 12 months. The 12 months runs from the date the current rent started applying, or from the date of the last increase, whichever is later.

The 12 month restriction applies to the tenancy, not to the property. If Tenant A’s tenancy genuinely ends and Tenant B enters a genuinely new tenancy, you can agree a new starting rent with Tenant B. Tenant A’s previous increase does not create a property-wide 12 month lockout.

The situation that does catch landlords out is the opposite one. A fixed-term tenancy that simply rolls into a periodic tenancy with the same tenant is a continuing tenancy, not a new one, and it does not reset the rent increase clock. If you increased the rent six months into the fixed term, you cannot increase it again just because the term has ended.

The test is whether the tenancy is genuinely new. A new tenant on a new agreement is. The same tenant continuing on after a fixed term is not.

The 60 day notice requirement

You must give at least 60 days’ written notice before the new rent takes effect. Sixty days is a minimum, not a target, and the clock runs from when the notice is properly served, not from when you wrote it.

Service method matters. If you post the notice, you must allow additional working days for delivery on top of the 60. Email is acceptable only if the tenant has agreed in the tenancy agreement to receive notices electronically at a nominated address. If they have not, an emailed notice may not be validly served.

The safest approach is to serve it in a way you can evidence, and to count generously. A notice that is four days short is simply invalid.

The notice can be served before the 12 month anniversary of the last increase, provided the increase itself does not take effect until both requirements are met: at least 60 days from service, and at least 12 months since the rent last changed. In practice that lets you line the two dates up rather than waiting for the anniversary and then adding 60 days on top.

Boarding house tenancies have a separate, shorter notice period of 28 days.

What the notice should contain

The statutory essentials are short. The notice must be in writing, must specify the increased rent, and must state the date it becomes payable. Get those right and the notice is valid.

Best practice goes further, because a notice that leaves no room for argument is a notice that does not end up at the Tribunal. A well drafted notice also includes:

• The address of the property
• The name of the tenant or tenants
• The current rent
• The new rent amount and the date from which it applies (the statutory essentials)
• The date the notice was given

Tenancy Services publishes a rent increase notice template. Using it is safer than writing your own, because it prompts every required element.

Do not include conditions, negotiations or alternatives in the notice. A notice that offers the tenant a choice between two rents is not a valid notice of increase.

Fixed-term tenancies are different

During a fixed term, you can only increase the rent if the tenancy agreement expressly allows for it and sets out how the increase will be worked out. If the agreement is silent on rent increases, you cannot increase the rent during the fixed term, even with 60 days’ notice.

If the agreement does allow it, the 12 month rule and the 60 day notice requirement still apply.

Where a fixed term is coming to an end, an increase can be part of the negotiation about what happens next, but it still needs 60 days’ notice to take effect. In practice that means starting the conversation well before the term expires, not in the final fortnight.

Is there a limit on how much you can increase rent?

There is no rent control in New Zealand and no percentage cap on an increase. You could in principle increase the rent by any amount, provided you follow the process.

The practical limit is market rent. A tenant can apply to the Tenancy Tribunal for an order reducing the rent if it is substantially above market rent for comparable properties in the area. If the Tribunal agrees, it can set a lower rent and specify a period during which it cannot be increased again.

“Substantially above market” is not defined as a fixed percentage. The Tribunal looks at comparable properties, usually drawing on the Tenancy Services bond data alongside evidence from both parties. A modest increase that brings a below-market rent up to market will not be at risk. A large increase that pushes well past what comparable properties achieve might be.

What justifies an increase

Legally, you do not have to justify a rent increase at all. The requirement is procedural, not substantive.

Practically, an explanation makes a large difference to how a tenant receives it. Rising rates, insurance premiums, mortgage costs, maintenance and improvements to the property are all reasonable context, and a tenant who understands the reasoning is far less likely to start looking elsewhere.

The strongest justification is that the rent has simply fallen behind comparable properties. If you can point to what similar properties in the suburb are letting for, the increase reads as a correction rather than an imposition.

What a tenant can and cannot do

A tenant cannot refuse a validly served increase. If the process has been followed, the new rent applies from the stated date.

What a tenant can do is challenge it. They can apply to the Tenancy Tribunal on the basis that the rent is substantially above market rent, and they must generally do so within a set period of receiving the notice. They can also challenge an increase that does not comply with the process, and an invalid notice has no effect.

A tenant on a periodic tenancy who does not want to pay the new rent can give notice and leave. This is the real risk of an aggressive increase, and it is worth pricing properly: the cost of losing a good tenant, including vacancy, letting costs and the risk of a worse replacement, frequently exceeds the extra rent you were chasing.

The most common mistakes

Counting the 60 days wrong. Not allowing for service time when posting, or counting from the date on the letter rather than the date served.

Increasing within 12 months. Particularly where a fixed term has rolled into a periodic tenancy with the same tenant, and the landlord treats it as a fresh start. It is a continuing tenancy and the clock does not reset.

Increasing during a fixed term with no provision for it. If the agreement does not allow for an increase, you cannot make one.

Serving by email without agreement. Electronic service is only valid if the tenant has agreed to it and nominated an address.

Making it conditional. A notice that presents options or invites negotiation is not a valid notice.

Leaving it too long between reviews. This is the most expensive mistake and the least visible. A rent left unreviewed for three years can drift well below market, and because you can only increase once every 12 months and only to a defensible level, catching up takes years.

Reviewing rent without losing a good tenant

A reliable long-term tenant is worth a great deal. The aim is to keep the rent at market without giving them a reason to leave.

Review annually as a matter of routine rather than occasionally in large jumps. A modest annual adjustment is expected and easily absorbed. A large increase after three years of nothing feels like a shock, even when it only brings the rent to market.

Give more notice than the minimum where you can. Sixty days is the legal floor, and a tenant who hears about it earlier has time to plan.

Pair an increase with something tangible where it makes sense. If you are also replacing the heat pump, upgrading the insulation or repainting, say so. The increase then sits alongside visible investment in the property.

And know your number before you send the notice. An increase you can support with comparable properties is defensible at the Tribunal and reasonable to the tenant. One you have guessed at is neither. Our guide to how much rent you can charge in Auckland covers how to work that out, or you can request a free rental appraisal.

Frequently asked questions

How often can a landlord increase rent in New Zealand?

Once every 12 months, for the tenancy. The period runs from when the current rent took effect or from the last increase, whichever is later. A genuinely new tenancy with a new tenant can start at a new rent, but a fixed term rolling into a periodic tenancy with the same tenant is a continuing tenancy and does not reset the clock.

How much notice is required for a rent increase?

At least 60 days’ written notice before the new rent takes effect. If the notice is posted, allow additional working days for service on top of the 60. Email is only valid if the tenant has agreed in writing to receive notices electronically.

Is there a limit on how much a landlord can increase rent?

There is no legal cap. However, a tenant can apply to the Tenancy Tribunal for a reduction if the rent is substantially above market rent for comparable properties, and the Tribunal can set a lower rent and fix a period before it can be increased again.

Can I increase the rent during a fixed-term tenancy?

Only if the tenancy agreement expressly provides for it and sets out how the increase is calculated. If the agreement does not address rent increases, the rent cannot be increased during the fixed term. Where it does allow it, the 12 month rule and 60 day notice still apply.

What happens if I get the notice wrong?

The increase is invalid and the tenant continues paying the previous rent. You need to serve a fresh, compliant notice and wait another full 60 days. If the tenant has already paid the higher amount under an invalid notice, they can seek repayment.

Can a tenant refuse a rent increase?

Not if it has been validly served. They can challenge it at the Tenancy Tribunal on the basis that it is substantially above market rent, or on the basis that the process was not followed. A tenant on a periodic tenancy can also give notice and leave.

Getting it right

Rent increases are straightforward once you know the three rules that matter: once every 12 months, 60 days’ written notice, and a fixed term needs a clause allowing it. The mistakes are almost always procedural rather than about the amount.

If you are not sure whether your rent is where it should be, or when you last had a defensible review, request a free rental appraisal and we will show you what comparable Auckland properties are achieving. If you would rather not manage the review process yourself, our property management team handles it as part of the service.