Portfolio Committee on Human Settlements
The portfolio committee on human settlements has decided to redraft the Rental Housing Amendment Bill.
In a statement released by the committee, the chairperson, Ms Nomhle Dambuza, confirms that the decision was taken in conjunction with the human settlements department and the state law advisor.
She added that this decision now provides an opportunity for further public comments particularly from those that did not participate in the first round.
The bill was tabled in Parliament in November last year.
The committee wants the redrafting process to address “loopholes and ambiguities” that exist in the Rental Housing Act of 1999 and the Rental Housing Amendment Act of 2007.
“Our experiences, through complaints brought before us and the ones picked up during our oversight visits, suggested that there are a lot of problems in the rental sector and we hope that redrafting this bill will minimise those challenges. In our view, the redraft provides a balanced view of how changes faced by landlords as well as tenants should be addressed”.
The plan is for the committee to now draw up a new bill.
Ms Dambuza stressed that interaction between the committee and the department will continue throughout the process.
A key concern of the committee about the bill in its present form is that the rights and obligations of landlords and tenants are not clearly spelled out.
Some of the issues that the committee wants to bring into the proposed legislation include ensuring that landlords reimburse the deposit with interest and carry out regular maintenance of a rented property.
Sabinet Cape Town Office
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