What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4822517 about?

The tribunal order states: [The tenant/s] must pay [The landlord/s] $2,899.94 immediately, calculated as

How much money was awarded in case 4822517?

Filing Fee: $20.44 awarded to landlord; Lawns and Garden Work: $345.00 awarded to landlord; Rent To End Of Tenancy On 1 February…: $2,480.00 awarded to landlord; Water Charges To End Of Tenancy: $54.50 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4822517?

The dispute type was not classified.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4822517?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/10556595-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4822517 about?

The tribunal order states: [The tenant/s] must pay [The landlord/s] $2,899.94 immediately, calculated as

How much money was awarded in case 4822517?

Filing Fee: $20.44 awarded to landlord; Lawns and Garden Work: $345.00 awarded to landlord; Rent To End Of Tenancy On 1 February…: $2,480.00 awarded to landlord; Water Charges To End Of Tenancy: $54.50 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4822517?

The dispute type was not classified.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4822517?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/10556595-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 4822517 — Tenancy dispute

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4822517 — net $2,899.94 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent to end of tenancy on 1 February 2024	$2,480.00	Rent to end of tenancy on 1 February 2024
Water charges to end of tenancy	$54.50	Water charges to end of tenancy
Cleaning and garden work	$345.00	Cleaning and garden work
Filing fee reimbursement	$20.44	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$2,899.94
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$2,899.94

Order

[The tenant/s] must pay [The landlord/s] $2,899.94 immediately, calculated as shown in the table below.

Reasons

All three parties attended the hearing on 25 June 2024. Directions were given for further written submissions following the hearing. The landlord provided further information as directed, but nothing was received from the tenants within the time allowed.
The landlord has applied for rent arrears, compensation, a break lease fee, and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy.
The parties signed a residential tenancy agreement for a fixed term from 12 May 2023 to 13 May 2024. On 10 November 2023 one of the two tenants, Ms S, requested that the tenancy be brought to an early end. The landlord agreed on the basis that the tenants were liable to pay rent until replacement tenants were found. The tenants would also pay any expenses reasonably incurred in relation to the early release from the tenancy, up to a maximum of $870.00 plus GST as per a costs schedule, which was also provided.
Ms S vacated the premises on 11 December 2023, the other tenant having vacated at some time prior to 10 November 2023. New tenants were found, and the tenancy ended on 1 February 2024. Rent and Water
The rent arrears to the end of the tenancy, after deduction of the bond, are $2,480.00. There were also final water charges of $54.50. These amounts are established based on the rent statement and water use calculations provided by the landlord.
Ms S challenges the rent claim on the basis that she ended the tenancy early pursuant to section 56B of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (the Act). This provides that a tenant can withdraw from a tenancy by giving at least 2 days’ notice to the landlord, if the notice is accompanied by “qualifying evidence” that the tenant has been a victim of “family violence” while a tenant of the premises, and the notice is in the approved form and includes the prescribed information.
Section 56B is supplemented by the Residential Tenancies (Termination For Physical Assault by Tenant and Withdrawal Following Family Violence) Regulations 2022. The Regulations prescribe the information to be included in the withdrawal notice, who can give a qualifying declaration, and what constitutes “qualifying evidence”.
Ms S gave notice to end the tenancy by email on 10 November 2023, with the last day of the tenancy on 11 December 2023. There was no reference to her reasons for wanting to end the tenancy, although in evidence the landlord said she notified them that this was a case of family violence. However, the notice was not in the prescribed form, did not include the prescribed information, and there was no qualifying evidence of family violence. The other tenant had already left, so this does not seem to be a case of a tenant needing to leave urgently to avoid an ongoing situation. The Regulations apply and because they were not complied with, Ms S did not withdraw from the tenancy pursuant to section 56B of the Act. This means that both tenants are liable for the rent to the end of their joint tenancy.

Did the tenant comply with their obligations at the end of the tenancy?

At the end of the tenancy the tenant must leave the premises reasonably clean and tidy, remove all rubbish, return all keys and security devices, and leave all chattels provided for their benefit.
The tenants did not leave the premises reasonably clean and tidy in some minor respects. I find, based on the landlord’s photographs, that the fireplace had not been cleaned out, the oven needed wiping down, the kitchen sink and bathroom vanity were not reasonably clean, there was a pile of woodchips in the garage, and the lawns needed mowing.
I award $150.00 plus GST for cleaning and $150.00 plus GST for mowing as claimed ($345.00). Break lease fee
The landlord claimed $870.00 as a break lease fee.
Where the landlord consents to subletting or parting with possession, the landlord is entitled to recover from the tenant “...any expenses reasonably incurred by the landlord in respect of the...parting with possession...” (section 44A(1) of the Act). A landlord who seeks to recover expenses from the tenant “must first provide an itemised account of the expenses” to the tenant (section 44A(2)).
I interpret section 44A as requiring the landlord to provide an itemised account of the expenses which have in fact been incurred. In my view, the landlord did not do this. I entirely accept that the landlord provided detailed information about the expenses that might be incurred, but an itemised account of the expenses actually incurred has not been produced.
For example, the costs schedule notes that “Tenancy Finalisation Costs” could be incurred “Up to $240” based on an average hourly rate of $60.00 plus GST. The tenants would be right to assume, from the invoice, that these costs had been incurred in full. However, that is not the same thing as an itemised account showing the time in fact spent, and the hourly rate, to show why the maximum amount was being charged.
For these reasons, I must decline to award the break lease fee. Filing fee and suppression
The landlord’s application has been partly successful. I award the filing fee.
The Tribunal must, in any proceedings relating to withdrawal from a tenancy under section 56B of the Act, order that the name and identifying particulars of the parties not be published. The application of section 56B was raised in this proceeding. The Tribunal therefore orders suppression for all three parties.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4822517 — net $2,899.94 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent to end of tenancy on 1 February 2024	$2,480.00	Rent to end of tenancy on 1 February 2024
Water charges to end of tenancy	$54.50	Water charges to end of tenancy
Cleaning and garden work	$345.00	Cleaning and garden work
Filing fee reimbursement	$20.44	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$2,899.94
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$2,899.94

Order

[The tenant/s] must pay [The landlord/s] $2,899.94 immediately, calculated as shown in the table below.

Reasons

All three parties attended the hearing on 25 June 2024. Directions were given for further written submissions following the hearing. The landlord provided further information as directed, but nothing was received from the tenants within the time allowed.
The landlord has applied for rent arrears, compensation, a break lease fee, and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy.
The parties signed a residential tenancy agreement for a fixed term from 12 May 2023 to 13 May 2024. On 10 November 2023 one of the two tenants, Ms S, requested that the tenancy be brought to an early end. The landlord agreed on the basis that the tenants were liable to pay rent until replacement tenants were found. The tenants would also pay any expenses reasonably incurred in relation to the early release from the tenancy, up to a maximum of $870.00 plus GST as per a costs schedule, which was also provided.
Ms S vacated the premises on 11 December 2023, the other tenant having vacated at some time prior to 10 November 2023. New tenants were found, and the tenancy ended on 1 February 2024. Rent and Water
The rent arrears to the end of the tenancy, after deduction of the bond, are $2,480.00. There were also final water charges of $54.50. These amounts are established based on the rent statement and water use calculations provided by the landlord.
Ms S challenges the rent claim on the basis that she ended the tenancy early pursuant to section 56B of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (the Act). This provides that a tenant can withdraw from a tenancy by giving at least 2 days’ notice to the landlord, if the notice is accompanied by “qualifying evidence” that the tenant has been a victim of “family violence” while a tenant of the premises, and the notice is in the approved form and includes the prescribed information.
Section 56B is supplemented by the Residential Tenancies (Termination For Physical Assault by Tenant and Withdrawal Following Family Violence) Regulations 2022. The Regulations prescribe the information to be included in the withdrawal notice, who can give a qualifying declaration, and what constitutes “qualifying evidence”.
Ms S gave notice to end the tenancy by email on 10 November 2023, with the last day of the tenancy on 11 December 2023. There was no reference to her reasons for wanting to end the tenancy, although in evidence the landlord said she notified them that this was a case of family violence. However, the notice was not in the prescribed form, did not include the prescribed information, and there was no qualifying evidence of family violence. The other tenant had already left, so this does not seem to be a case of a tenant needing to leave urgently to avoid an ongoing situation. The Regulations apply and because they were not complied with, Ms S did not withdraw from the tenancy pursuant to section 56B of the Act. This means that both tenants are liable for the rent to the end of their joint tenancy.

Did the tenant comply with their obligations at the end of the tenancy?

At the end of the tenancy the tenant must leave the premises reasonably clean and tidy, remove all rubbish, return all keys and security devices, and leave all chattels provided for their benefit.
The tenants did not leave the premises reasonably clean and tidy in some minor respects. I find, based on the landlord’s photographs, that the fireplace had not been cleaned out, the oven needed wiping down, the kitchen sink and bathroom vanity were not reasonably clean, there was a pile of woodchips in the garage, and the lawns needed mowing.
I award $150.00 plus GST for cleaning and $150.00 plus GST for mowing as claimed ($345.00). Break lease fee
The landlord claimed $870.00 as a break lease fee.
Where the landlord consents to subletting or parting with possession, the landlord is entitled to recover from the tenant “...any expenses reasonably incurred by the landlord in respect of the...parting with possession...” (section 44A(1) of the Act). A landlord who seeks to recover expenses from the tenant “must first provide an itemised account of the expenses” to the tenant (section 44A(2)).
I interpret section 44A as requiring the landlord to provide an itemised account of the expenses which have in fact been incurred. In my view, the landlord did not do this. I entirely accept that the landlord provided detailed information about the expenses that might be incurred, but an itemised account of the expenses actually incurred has not been produced.
For example, the costs schedule notes that “Tenancy Finalisation Costs” could be incurred “Up to $240” based on an average hourly rate of $60.00 plus GST. The tenants would be right to assume, from the invoice, that these costs had been incurred in full. However, that is not the same thing as an itemised account showing the time in fact spent, and the hourly rate, to show why the maximum amount was being charged.
For these reasons, I must decline to award the break lease fee. Filing fee and suppression
The landlord’s application has been partly successful. I award the filing fee.
The Tribunal must, in any proceedings relating to withdrawal from a tenancy under section 56B of the Act, order that the name and identifying particulars of the parties not be published. The application of section 56B was raised in this proceeding. The Tribunal therefore orders suppression for all three parties.

Tenancy Tribunal case 4822517 — Tenancy dispute

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 4822517 — Tenancy dispute

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Did the tenant comply with their obligations at the end of the tenancy?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Did the tenant comply with their obligations at the end of the tenancy?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions