The Government has said it will examine all sides when moving forward on amendments to the Landlord and Tenant Act, with further input to be sought.

Alexa Lightbourne, the Minister of Home Affairs, said the Government was committed to modernising the rental legislation to better serve landlords as well as their tenants.

“Strengthening landlord and tenant rights is essential to advancing broader housing relief,” Ms Lightbourne said.

“We recognise the unfortunate reality that some properties remain off the market due to lingering concerns about inadequate protections.

“Our aim is to create a rental market that is accountable, accessible and sustainable.

“The ministry is committed to ensuring that the proposed amendments provide certainty, are fit for purpose, bring more units to market and support long-term cost-of-living relief.”

A government spokeswoman said the Ministry of Home Affairs has worked to move forward with legislative efforts to update Bermuda’s rental laws to protect tenants while ensuring landlords have the “legal certainty” to manage their properties effectively.

“Through Consumer Affairs, the ministry has worked with the Attorney-General’s Chambers to determine the most effective legislative path forward,” the spokeswoman said.

“The proposed amendments build on prior drafts and consultation documents and are under legal review, ensuring it reflects both historical feedback and housing realities.

“A renewed round of stakeholder engagement will be conducted to gather updated input from tenants, landlords, legal professionals and housing advocates on the proposed direction.

“Following these consultations, a final draft will be submitted to Cabinet for approval.”

The comments came after the daughter of a senior couple who found themselves owed more than $19,000 in rental arrears said all sides must be considered when updating the Landlord and Tenant Act.

Margot Harvey told The Royal Gazette that while her parents had been fortunate to have had to bring only one tenant to court, for many property owners the possibility would be enough to deter them from renting.

“Once bitten, twice shy for a lot of landlords, and I think that contributes to the housing crisis,” she said.

Dr Harvey said that while the former tenant is now making regular payments on their arrears, between June 2024 and January this year her parents received only $56.50 in payments.

“Owning a piece of the rock with an income apartment to help with the mortgage is a dream, but to repeatedly have to come to the courts has become a nightmare,” Dr Harvey said.

“Landlords — many are seniors — are leaving their places empty rather than having a back-and-forth with the courts all the time.

“Landlords are swapping to Airbnb because they fear getting stuck with a problem tenant and large rental arrears.

“I hope that the Government takes into consideration all sides when they go to update the Landlord and Tenant Act.”

Dr Harvey said the property at the heart of her family’s legal case was a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment that was being rented for $2,500 a month.

“That was five years ago, but it has not moved much since then,” she said. “It feels like a lot of the time you can’t even get a one bedroom or a studio for $2,000 at this point.”

She said that legislative changes could help to encourage more landlords to put units back on the rental market, and reduce rental prices.

“We have landlords who keep their prices low and they get a difficult tenant or a bad tenant,” she said.

“I know that for a lot of landlords, just the thought of going through this is excessive.”

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