"Scumlord"

[Lilith7]

Sounds just charming; insisting on 'tenants who vote National'




https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/better-...risis-hero


"Bennett says his rentals are often the cheapest on the market, and it isnÔÇÖt realistic for the Government to expect his ÔÇ£entry level homesÔÇØ to be ÔÇ£four or five starÔÇØ quality.

ÔÇ£TheyÔÇÖre [MBIE] going on about vulnerability like I'm forcing people to live in these homes.ÔÇØ

However, his former property manager, former tenants and a previous Tenancy Tribunal ruling say the properties were neglected, and Bennett played a crucial role in that.

Liz Ranger, owner-operator of the now-defunct QCPM, was once family friends with Bennett.

ÔÇ£Lee Bennett needs to be shut down,ÔÇØ she says.

Another former tenant, Teryn Powell, also went to the Tenancy Tribunal in 2020 with complaints about disrepair and Bennett.

Powell says Bennett was pleasant, even ÔÇ£lovelyÔÇØ, when her tenancy began, but as problems persisted the relationship soured.

Powell went without consistent hot water for more than two months, forcing her and her toddler to shower at her parentÔÇÖs house.

When she suggested a rent reduction or compensation, Bennett ÔÇ£laughed in my faceÔÇØ, she says.

While Bennett sees his rentals ÔÇô now fewer than 40 ÔÇô as helping those who canÔÇÖt afford to live elsewhere, Ranger believes it means Bennett has got away with not acting on issues, because his vulnerable tenants wouldn't complain.

Lack of repairs and misleading information

Ranger says she sometimes instructed tenants to issue her a 14-day notice to get work done in a timely and professional manner.

She says if she hired an external contractor to progress necessary repairs, sheÔÇÖd get an ÔÇ£abusiveÔÇØ call from Bennett. ÔÇ£HeÔÇÖd say ÔÇÿyouÔÇÖre bankrupting meÔÇÖ.ÔÇØ