A national renters’ survey has just put numbers behind a complaint tenants have made for years: a signed Healthy Homes compliance statement is no guarantee a rental is actually warm and dry. Some of Auckland’s largest property management firms, including Barfoot & Thompson, were named in the breakdown. Here’s what happened last week, and what it means for your rental.
Big Property Managers Named Over Mould and Damp Complaints
The Aotearoa Renters’ Survey 2026, run by ActionStation and Renters United, surveyed 3,310 tenants. RNZ Checkpoint reported the company breakdown on 25 August 2026.
- 42.7% of respondents who were told their home met Healthy Homes standards said they still lived with mould, damp or draughts
- 18.7% of all respondents said their home was outright not up to standard
- Of 1,163 respondents who named their manager, Bayleys sat highest at 63.2%, followed by Quinovic (58.8%), Crockers (53.8%) and Barfoot & Thompson (52.6%)
- Several of those figures rest on small samples — only 30 people named Bayleys and 33 named Quinovic, so a handful of answers moves the percentage a long way
- Under section 45 of the Residential Tenancies Act, the landlord must comply with the Healthy Homes standards — and because the Act treats an agent as a landlord, a property manager can be taken to the Tenancy Tribunal too, though it’s the owner who ultimately pays for insulation, heating or ventilation work
No qualification is needed to carry out a Healthy Homes assessment or sign the compliance statement. If a tenant thinks the certificate is wrong, the burden falls on them to prove it at the Tribunal.
What this means for landlords: a compliance statement your property manager signed isn’t proof your property is actually compliant. Ask what evidence backs it up — an independent assessment, not just a checklist tick.
Tenancy Services Is Emailing Every Tenant a New “Tenant Number” This Month
Tenancy Services confirmed on 24 August 2026 it’s emailing every tenant with an active bond a unique tenant number, as part of its move to fully digital bond management.
- Emails go out from late August to early September, from no-reply@e.comms.tenancy.govt.nz
- The number is used to update bond contact details, view a bond balance, and respond to bond refund requests
- Each tenant gets their own number for each tenancy — it resets if they move
- Tenancy Services is explicit that tenants should not share the number with anyone, including their landlord
- The email does not ask for money or personal information, and tenants don’t need to do anything with it right now
What this means for landlords: expect tenants to ask you about this email. It’s genuine — reassure them, but don’t ask for their tenant number yourself. It’s a tenant-only credential for Tenancy Services’ own bond system, not something a landlord or property manager needs.
What This Means If You Self-Manage
Both stories point the same way: compliance paperwork is only as good as what’s actually behind it. A signed Healthy Homes statement means nothing if no one has properly assessed the property. A government system change means nothing if you don’t know it’s happening and can’t tell a tenant it’s real.
Self-managing landlords carry all of this alone — tracking every rule change, every digital rollout, every compliance document, with no second set of eyes checking the paperwork actually matches the property. That’s exactly where the risk sits.
And if you’d rather not manage it yourself, that’s exactly what Keyvi is here for.
Book a Free Appraisal
Keyvi manages Auckland rentals with full compliance, transparent reporting, and hands-on communication — so you always know where your property stands.
Book your free appraisal at keyvi.co.nz/free-appraisal
Or call Varun directly on +64 204 030 0600.
Sources & Further Reading
- Worst property managers named and shamed in new report — RNZ, 25 August 2026
- Worst property managers named and shamed in new report — 1News, 26 August 2026
- Aotearoa Renters’ Survey 2026 — Renters United & ActionStation, 15 August 2026
- We are sending tenant numbers to tenants from late August — Tenancy Services, 24 August 2026
- Breaches of the Residential Tenancies Act — Tenancy Services
- Regulation of Residential Property Managers — Ministry of Housing and Urban Development
- Healthy Homes standards — what a landlord needs to know — Tenancy Services
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