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28: Increase of rent by agreement or order in case of substantial improvements, improved facilities, or variation of terms
or “Rent can go up if the landlord makes the house better or changes the agreement in a way that helps you.”

You could also call this:

“The Tenancy Tribunal can allow landlords to raise the rent if they have surprise costs they couldn't predict.”

You can ask the Tenancy Tribunal to increase your rent if you have unexpected expenses. This means if you’re a landlord and you’ve had to spend money on the rental property that you couldn’t have known about when you last set the rent, you can ask for help. The Tribunal can decide to raise the rent by any amount they think is fair. They’ll look at what kind of expenses you had and how much they cost. If they agree that you really couldn’t have seen these costs coming, they might let you charge more rent to cover them.

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Next up: 28B: Effect of rent increases under section 28 or 28A

or “Rent increases agreed or ordered under special rules don't change when you can normally raise the rent.”

Part 2 Tenancy agreements
Key money, bonds, and rents

28AIncrease of rent by order in case of unforeseen expenses

  1. The Tribunal may, on application by the landlord, make an order increasing the rent by any amount the Tribunal thinks fit if the landlord—

  2. has incurred expenses in respect of the premises; and
    1. the nature or the amount of those expenses could not reasonably have been foreseen when the rent was last fixed.
      Notes
      • Section 28A: inserted, on , by section 22 of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 95).