What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4800157 about?

The tribunal order states: An application for suppression has been made in this case and the Tribunal

How much money was awarded in case 4800157?

Advertising Costs: $350.00 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $20.44 awarded to tenant

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4800157?

The dispute type was not classified.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4800157?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/10018264-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4800157 about?

The tribunal order states: An application for suppression has been made in this case and the Tribunal

How much money was awarded in case 4800157?

Advertising Costs: $350.00 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $20.44 awarded to tenant

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4800157?

The dispute type was not classified.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4800157?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/10018264-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 4800157 — Tenancy dispute

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4800157 — net $329.56 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Tenant	Reason
Advertising costs	$350.00		Advertising costs
Filing fee reimbursement		$20.44	Filing fee reimbursement
Total award	$350.00	$20.44
Net award	$329.56
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$329.56

Order

An application for suppression has been made in this case and the Tribunal orders suppression of the Tenants’ and Landlord’s name and identifying details.
The term of the fixed-term tenancy of [The tenant/s] at [Tenancy address suppressed] is reduced and now ends at 11.59pm on Sunday 21 April 2024.
The tenants must pay the landlord $329.56 immediately as calculated in the table below.

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing which was held by teleconference.
The tenants have applied for reduction of the fixed-term tenancy due to end on 20 March 2025. Reduction in fixed term tenancy
The Tribunal may reduce a fixed term tenancy where: a. there has been an unforeseen change in the applicant’s circumstances; and b. there would be severe hardship to the applicant if the term is not reduced; and c. the applicant’s hardship would be greater than the hardship to the other party if the term is reduced. See section 66(1) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
I accept the evidence that there has been an unforeseen change in the tenants’ circumstances. They came to New Zealand with a 2-year employment contract commencing in April 2023. The salary from this employment was $140,000 per annum. However, 2 months into the contract the salary was reduced and on 1 September 2023 the tenant was advised that his salary was to be further reduced to half the original salary, commencing on 5 September 2023.
I am satisfied that the tenants would not have foreseen this reduction in salary when they signed up for a two-year lease.
Further, I am satisfied that the tenants would suffer severe hardship if the term of the tenancy were not reduced.
The reduction in salary meant that the tenant’s salary went from $7,609.00 per month to $3,709.00 per month, with the rent remaining at $5,400.00 per month.
I also accept the landlord’s evidence that they could also suffer hardship if the term is reduced because if they were unable to get tenants to commence a new tenancy as soon as these tenants’ tenancy terminated, they would miss out on rent payments and would still have to pay monthly Body Corporate fees of $1,100.00.
However, I find that the tenant’s hardship would be greater than the landlord’s hardship. I say this largely because paying rent at the current rate is obviously untenable for the tenants given their income, and also because the landlords now have 71/2 weeks in which to find a new tenants.
While I note the landlord’s comment that he does not wish to show prospective tenants through the premises while these tenants remain in occupancy, a WhatsApp exchange between the tenant and landlord in January 2023 shows that at that time they had advertised the premises while the previous tenants were in occupation. I see no reason why this cannot happen during the current tenancy.
Further, the landlords had clearly contemplated showing tenants through the premises while these tenants were still in occupation because in an email dated 27 January 2024 the landlord requested that the tenants keep the premises tidy so that prospective tenants can be shown through.
I also accept the tenant’s evidence that when they had originally seen the premises advertised for rent, the advertisement stated that the tenancy would be for a fixed term of 12 months. While the tenants subsequently agreed to a two-year lease at the instigation of the landlords, the fact that it was advertised for 12 months indicates that the landlord was comfortable with a 12 month term.
Where the Tribunal reduces a fixed-term tenancy, it may order the tenant to pay the landlord reasonable compensation for any resulting loss. See section 66(2) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
I award compensation of $350.00 to the landlord as the likely advertising costs for a new tenancy. I am awarding these costs because the landlord will have to find new tenants 11 months before they would have had to under the original agreement.
I note that neither the tenants nor the landlord had any objective evidence relating to likely advertising costs. I have awarded $350.00 as the halfway point between both of their estimations of the cost.
I am not awarding any further compensation such as a possible loss of rental because the landlord now has 71/2 weeks in which to find a new tenant. There was no objective evidence supplied to indicate that this would not be enough time in which to have the premises re-tenanted. Filing fee reimbursement
I am also ordering the landlord to reimburse the filing fee to the tenants because the tenants were successful in their application for a reduction in the fixed term tenancy. Withdrawal of amended claim
Subsequent to the original application for a reduction in the fixed term tenancy, the tenants amended their claim to include claims largely relating to heating and the landlords’ failure to remedy issues in a timely way.
At today’s hearing the tenants withdrew these claims. Suppression of names
Section 95A of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 provides that: (1) The Tribunal may, on the application of any party to the proceedings or on its own initiative, having regard to the interests of the parties and to the public interest order that all or part of the evidence given or the name or any identifying particulars of any witness or party not be published. (2) An order may be subject to any conditions that the Tribunal considers appropriate. (3) If a party that has wholly or substantially succeeded in the proceedings applies for an order that their name or identifying particulars not be published, the Tribunal must make the order unless the Tribunal considers that publication is in the public interest, or is justified because of the party’s conduct or any other circumstances of the case.
The tenants have applied for suppression of their names and I am ordering suppression pursuant to s95A(3) above.
I am also ordering suppression of the landlord’s name pursuant to s95A(1). I am doing so because I consider there is no public interest in having the landlord’s name published in these particular circumstances, and also because at today’s hearing the tenants endorsed the landlord’s wish to have their name suppressed. C ter Haar 28 February 2024

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4800157 — net $329.56 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Tenant	Reason
Advertising costs	$350.00		Advertising costs
Filing fee reimbursement		$20.44	Filing fee reimbursement
Total award	$350.00	$20.44
Net award	$329.56
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$329.56

Order

An application for suppression has been made in this case and the Tribunal orders suppression of the Tenants’ and Landlord’s name and identifying details.
The term of the fixed-term tenancy of [The tenant/s] at [Tenancy address suppressed] is reduced and now ends at 11.59pm on Sunday 21 April 2024.
The tenants must pay the landlord $329.56 immediately as calculated in the table below.

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing which was held by teleconference.
The tenants have applied for reduction of the fixed-term tenancy due to end on 20 March 2025. Reduction in fixed term tenancy
The Tribunal may reduce a fixed term tenancy where: a. there has been an unforeseen change in the applicant’s circumstances; and b. there would be severe hardship to the applicant if the term is not reduced; and c. the applicant’s hardship would be greater than the hardship to the other party if the term is reduced. See section 66(1) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
I accept the evidence that there has been an unforeseen change in the tenants’ circumstances. They came to New Zealand with a 2-year employment contract commencing in April 2023. The salary from this employment was $140,000 per annum. However, 2 months into the contract the salary was reduced and on 1 September 2023 the tenant was advised that his salary was to be further reduced to half the original salary, commencing on 5 September 2023.
I am satisfied that the tenants would not have foreseen this reduction in salary when they signed up for a two-year lease.
Further, I am satisfied that the tenants would suffer severe hardship if the term of the tenancy were not reduced.
The reduction in salary meant that the tenant’s salary went from $7,609.00 per month to $3,709.00 per month, with the rent remaining at $5,400.00 per month.
I also accept the landlord’s evidence that they could also suffer hardship if the term is reduced because if they were unable to get tenants to commence a new tenancy as soon as these tenants’ tenancy terminated, they would miss out on rent payments and would still have to pay monthly Body Corporate fees of $1,100.00.
However, I find that the tenant’s hardship would be greater than the landlord’s hardship. I say this largely because paying rent at the current rate is obviously untenable for the tenants given their income, and also because the landlords now have 71/2 weeks in which to find a new tenants.
While I note the landlord’s comment that he does not wish to show prospective tenants through the premises while these tenants remain in occupancy, a WhatsApp exchange between the tenant and landlord in January 2023 shows that at that time they had advertised the premises while the previous tenants were in occupation. I see no reason why this cannot happen during the current tenancy.
Further, the landlords had clearly contemplated showing tenants through the premises while these tenants were still in occupation because in an email dated 27 January 2024 the landlord requested that the tenants keep the premises tidy so that prospective tenants can be shown through.
I also accept the tenant’s evidence that when they had originally seen the premises advertised for rent, the advertisement stated that the tenancy would be for a fixed term of 12 months. While the tenants subsequently agreed to a two-year lease at the instigation of the landlords, the fact that it was advertised for 12 months indicates that the landlord was comfortable with a 12 month term.
Where the Tribunal reduces a fixed-term tenancy, it may order the tenant to pay the landlord reasonable compensation for any resulting loss. See section 66(2) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
I award compensation of $350.00 to the landlord as the likely advertising costs for a new tenancy. I am awarding these costs because the landlord will have to find new tenants 11 months before they would have had to under the original agreement.
I note that neither the tenants nor the landlord had any objective evidence relating to likely advertising costs. I have awarded $350.00 as the halfway point between both of their estimations of the cost.
I am not awarding any further compensation such as a possible loss of rental because the landlord now has 71/2 weeks in which to find a new tenant. There was no objective evidence supplied to indicate that this would not be enough time in which to have the premises re-tenanted. Filing fee reimbursement
I am also ordering the landlord to reimburse the filing fee to the tenants because the tenants were successful in their application for a reduction in the fixed term tenancy. Withdrawal of amended claim
Subsequent to the original application for a reduction in the fixed term tenancy, the tenants amended their claim to include claims largely relating to heating and the landlords’ failure to remedy issues in a timely way.
At today’s hearing the tenants withdrew these claims. Suppression of names
Section 95A of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 provides that: (1) The Tribunal may, on the application of any party to the proceedings or on its own initiative, having regard to the interests of the parties and to the public interest order that all or part of the evidence given or the name or any identifying particulars of any witness or party not be published. (2) An order may be subject to any conditions that the Tribunal considers appropriate. (3) If a party that has wholly or substantially succeeded in the proceedings applies for an order that their name or identifying particulars not be published, the Tribunal must make the order unless the Tribunal considers that publication is in the public interest, or is justified because of the party’s conduct or any other circumstances of the case.
The tenants have applied for suppression of their names and I am ordering suppression pursuant to s95A(3) above.
I am also ordering suppression of the landlord’s name pursuant to s95A(1). I am doing so because I consider there is no public interest in having the landlord’s name published in these particular circumstances, and also because at today’s hearing the tenants endorsed the landlord’s wish to have their name suppressed. C ter Haar 28 February 2024

Tenancy Tribunal case 4800157 — Tenancy dispute

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 4800157 — Tenancy dispute

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions