What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4894480 about?

The tribunal order states: [The tenant/s] to pay [The landlord/s] $274.28 from the bond, calculated as

How much money was awarded in case 4894480?

Cleaning: $101.78 awarded to landlord; Holes: $172.50 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4894480?

The primary dispute was Property damage. Related themes: Cleanliness.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4894480?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/10670845-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 4894480 about?

The tribunal order states: [The tenant/s] to pay [The landlord/s] $274.28 from the bond, calculated as

How much money was awarded in case 4894480?

Cleaning: $101.78 awarded to landlord; Holes: $172.50 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4894480?

The primary dispute was Property damage. Related themes: Cleanliness.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4894480?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/10670845-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 4894480 — Property damage

Tenantcheck Insights

Reasons

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4894480 — net $274.28 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Repairs: holes	$172.50	Repairs: holes
Cleaning	$101.78	Cleaning
Net award	$274.28
Bond	$2,300.00
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$274.28

Both parties attended the hearing.

The tenants initially sought their bond to be returned at the end, in March, of their six-year tenancy. The landlords then cross applied for compensation to be paid from the bond to them for cleaning and repair of some minor holes.

The tenants consent to the claim regarding the holes.

The issue in dispute is whether an amount should be paid for the cleaning. The law

At the end of a tenancy a tenant must leave the premises reasonably clean and tidy and remove all rubbish pursuant to section 40(1)(e) Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (RTA).

The tenant's statutory obligation is to leave the premises reasonably clean and reasonably tidy. This is not an absolute standard, and it does not mean that the premises will necessarily be ready for occupation by a new tenant straight away. It is to be expected that a landlord will spend some time (or pay someone else) on cleaning and maintenance work between tenancies. This is part of the business of being a landlord. In Ace Property Management v Owens (DC Wellington, CIV-2008-085-14441, 17 December 2008) the District Court said: A tenant’s obligation pursuant to the Act to leave a property in a “reasonably clean and reasonably tidy condition” does not mean that it will necessarily be up to a standard that a landlord may consider for a new tenant. It is a mistake for landlords to confuse those two matters.

The test as to whether premises are in a reasonably clean and tidy condition is an objective test, not to be determined on the basis of the subjective opinion of either the landlord or the tenant. The RTA allows for fair wear and tear. Also, a tenant, generally, should not be expected to keep the premises any cleaner or tidier than they were at the start of the tenancy.

There is no scientific way to determine what is reasonably clean and tidy, and the Tribunal must evaluate the evidence available, and in particular inspection reports and photographs. Discussion and findings

I accept the landlord’s evidence that they had the property professionally cleaned just prior to the commencement of this tenancy.

The photos demonstrate many areas that are not clean. In particular there are finger-marks on light switches and walls, food/drink on walls, mould on walls and windows, dust on skirtings, spider webs on curtains dirt in window tracks etc.

In assessing who is responsible for each area I do take into account that this was a six-year tenancy. Therefore, wear and tear is to be expected. That is an incident of people living in the premises and is ‘compensated’ by way of the rent payments the landlord receives.

In saying that, I can see some areas that should have been cleaned by the tenants but likely got missed in their final clean. These areas are the debris in cupboards and fingerprints on walls and light switches for example.

Accordingly, as discussed at the hearing, I do assess the tenants as liable for some of the cost of the clean, however not the majority of it. The standard to which the property was cleaned to was higher than can reasonably be expected by tenants, i.e., it was fit for re-occupation.

Having assessed the evidence I am satisfied that the tenants should be responsible for 1.5hours of the 7.5 hour clean and accordingly make an order for that amount. Filing fee

As both parties have been partially successful in their applications it is not appropriate to award reimbursement of the filing fee to either party and those costs should lie where they fall. Suppression

As part of this order was made by consent and both parties were successful to an extent in their positions, 1 I direct that all identifying details be redacted from the published order.

Reasons

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4894480 — net $274.28 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Repairs: holes	$172.50	Repairs: holes
Cleaning	$101.78	Cleaning
Net award	$274.28
Bond	$2,300.00
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$274.28

Both parties attended the hearing.

The tenants consent to the claim regarding the holes.

The issue in dispute is whether an amount should be paid for the cleaning. The law

At the end of a tenancy a tenant must leave the premises reasonably clean and tidy and remove all rubbish pursuant to section 40(1)(e) Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (RTA).

I accept the landlord’s evidence that they had the property professionally cleaned just prior to the commencement of this tenancy.

Having assessed the evidence I am satisfied that the tenants should be responsible for 1.5hours of the 7.5 hour clean and accordingly make an order for that amount. Filing fee

As part of this order was made by consent and both parties were successful to an extent in their positions, 1 I direct that all identifying details be redacted from the published order.

Tenancy Tribunal case 4894480 — Property damage

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 4894480 — Property damage

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