‘Hugely disappointed’: Property management company criticised for discouraging landlords from renting to tenants with intellectual disabilities

An Auckland property management company has come under fire for publishing an article that discouraged landlords from renting homes to people with intellectual disabilities.

Clarke Group Property Management titled its blog post: “15 Fatal Mistakes New Zealand Landlords Make When Signing a Tenancy Agreement”.

The company dedicated one paragraph to “signing a tenancy agreement with a mentally disabled person”. Although it acknowledged that it is illegal for landlords to discriminate against people with disabilities under the Human Rights Act, the blog post says that “complications can arise” when renting to someone with a mental disability because their mental state “can often be unpredictable”.

Disability Rights Commissioner Paula Tesoriero said 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 told Newshub.

Newshub has contacted Clarke Group Property Management for comment.

The Community Law website says discrimination against people with disabilities includes when landlords decide not to rent a place to someone with an impairment, charging more rent compared to people without disabilities, and ending or not renewing a tenancy.