What was the outcome of Tenancy Tribunal case 4933613?

The tribunal order states: The tenancy of Fili Tupa at 54 Heathcote Street, Woolston, Christchurch 8023 is

How much money was awarded in case 4933613?

Rent Arrears: $375.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4933613?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4933613?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/10652877-Tenancy_Tribunal_Order.pdf.

What was the outcome of Tenancy Tribunal case 4933613?

The tribunal order states: The tenancy of Fili Tupa at 54 Heathcote Street, Woolston, Christchurch 8023 is

How much money was awarded in case 4933613?

Rent Arrears: $375.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4933613?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4933613?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/10652877-Tenancy_Tribunal_Order.pdf.

54 Heathcote Street, Woolston, Christchurch 8023 Tenancy Tribunal Case 4933613 — Rent arrears

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4933613 — net $375.00 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears (to 5 August 2024	$375.00	Rent arrears (to 5 August 2024
Net award	$375.00
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$375.00

Order

The tenancy of Fili Tupa at 54 Heathcote Street, Woolston, Christchurch 8023 is terminated, and possession is granted Kāinga Ora–Homes And Communities, at 11:59pm on Wednesday 31 July 2024.
Fili Tupa must pay Kāinga Ora–Homes And Communities $375.00 immediately, calculated as shown in table below.

Reasons

The landlord attended the hearing. The tenant did not.
I am satisfied that the tenant had received proper notice of the hearing time, date and place and chose not to attend. I called the tenant twice during the hearing. The first time the tenant hung up the phone when I asked who had answered the phone and the second time the call went straight to voicemail.
The landlord has applied for termination of the tenancy, possession and rent arrears.

Should the tenancy be terminated?

The Tribunal may terminate a tenancy for breach where, due to the nature or extent of the breach, it would be inequitable to refuse to terminate. See section 56(1) Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (“RTA”).
Where the breach is capable of remedy the landlord must first serve a notice on the tenant requiring them to remedy the breach within at least 14 days and establish that the tenant has failed to do so.
The tenant has breached his obligations by failing to notify the landlord that he would be away from the premise for a period longer than 30 days and failing to always live at the property. In addition, the tenant had fallen into rent arrears of more than 21 days, at the date the landlord made its application for termination of the tenancy and possession of the premise.
The landlord served a 14-day notice on the tenant on 3 April 2024 requiring the tenant to remedy all his breaches of the tenancy agreement. The tenant did not remedy these breaches within the required period.
The tenant’s neighbour confirmed on 26 July 2024 that she had not seen the tenant living at the premise for approximately 6 months. The property inspection carried out on 14 June 2024 also showed that the tenant was not living at the premise, as his clothing was missing from the wardrobe, but most of his other personal belongings were still at the premise. This indicates he has been away for more than 30 days without notifying the landlord, in breach of his tenancy agreement.
The tenancy manager went to visit the tenant to see if he was back at the premise on 26 July 2024 and she looked through the windows of the premise when the tenant did not answer the door. She observed that nothing looks any different to when the landlord had carried out the last property inspection on 14 June 2024.
The landlord was notified my MSD that the tenant had not been in contact with them since 23 October 2023 and had not completed his 52-week application. As such, they stopped the tenant’s benefit on 7 June 2024 until he completed the 52-week application. This resulted in the tenant’s benefit being stopped for a period and him falling behind on his rent.
The tenant’s rent has been being paid again directly from MSD, since 3 July 2024, but is still in $375.00 arrears as at today.
It would be inequitable to refuse to terminate the tenancy because the tenant is refusing to contact the landlord or to communicate with it as to where he is staying and when he is planning to return to the premise. The landlord is a social housing provider with a lengthy wait list of persons needing homes. It cannot leave a premise vacant when it could be used by another person of family desperately in need of a home.
I terminate the tenancy on the basis that the tenant continues to be in breach of the terms of his tenancy agreement. He has been away from the premise for more than 30 days, without notifying the landlord, is still more than 21 days in rent arrears and was more than 21 days in rent arrears at the date the landlord made its application to the Tribunal.

How much is owed for rent?

The tenancy ends on 5 August 2024 because the landlord cannot, pursuant to section 138(1)(a) of the District Court Act 2016, enforce the eviction order for 48 hours, and is unlikely to be able to take possession of the premise until Monday 5 August 2024. This gives the tenant time to move any belongings out of the premise that he wants to retain.
The landlord provided rent records which prove the amount owing at the end of the tenancy.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4933613 — net $375.00 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears (to 5 August 2024	$375.00	Rent arrears (to 5 August 2024
Net award	$375.00
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$375.00

Order

The tenancy of Fili Tupa at 54 Heathcote Street, Woolston, Christchurch 8023 is terminated, and possession is granted Kāinga Ora–Homes And Communities, at 11:59pm on Wednesday 31 July 2024.
Fili Tupa must pay Kāinga Ora–Homes And Communities $375.00 immediately, calculated as shown in table below.

Reasons

The landlord attended the hearing. The tenant did not.
I am satisfied that the tenant had received proper notice of the hearing time, date and place and chose not to attend. I called the tenant twice during the hearing. The first time the tenant hung up the phone when I asked who had answered the phone and the second time the call went straight to voicemail.
The landlord has applied for termination of the tenancy, possession and rent arrears.

Should the tenancy be terminated?

The Tribunal may terminate a tenancy for breach where, due to the nature or extent of the breach, it would be inequitable to refuse to terminate. See section 56(1) Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (“RTA”).
Where the breach is capable of remedy the landlord must first serve a notice on the tenant requiring them to remedy the breach within at least 14 days and establish that the tenant has failed to do so.
The tenant has breached his obligations by failing to notify the landlord that he would be away from the premise for a period longer than 30 days and failing to always live at the property. In addition, the tenant had fallen into rent arrears of more than 21 days, at the date the landlord made its application for termination of the tenancy and possession of the premise.
The landlord served a 14-day notice on the tenant on 3 April 2024 requiring the tenant to remedy all his breaches of the tenancy agreement. The tenant did not remedy these breaches within the required period.
The tenant’s neighbour confirmed on 26 July 2024 that she had not seen the tenant living at the premise for approximately 6 months. The property inspection carried out on 14 June 2024 also showed that the tenant was not living at the premise, as his clothing was missing from the wardrobe, but most of his other personal belongings were still at the premise. This indicates he has been away for more than 30 days without notifying the landlord, in breach of his tenancy agreement.
The tenancy manager went to visit the tenant to see if he was back at the premise on 26 July 2024 and she looked through the windows of the premise when the tenant did not answer the door. She observed that nothing looks any different to when the landlord had carried out the last property inspection on 14 June 2024.
The landlord was notified my MSD that the tenant had not been in contact with them since 23 October 2023 and had not completed his 52-week application. As such, they stopped the tenant’s benefit on 7 June 2024 until he completed the 52-week application. This resulted in the tenant’s benefit being stopped for a period and him falling behind on his rent.
The tenant’s rent has been being paid again directly from MSD, since 3 July 2024, but is still in $375.00 arrears as at today.
It would be inequitable to refuse to terminate the tenancy because the tenant is refusing to contact the landlord or to communicate with it as to where he is staying and when he is planning to return to the premise. The landlord is a social housing provider with a lengthy wait list of persons needing homes. It cannot leave a premise vacant when it could be used by another person of family desperately in need of a home.
I terminate the tenancy on the basis that the tenant continues to be in breach of the terms of his tenancy agreement. He has been away from the premise for more than 30 days, without notifying the landlord, is still more than 21 days in rent arrears and was more than 21 days in rent arrears at the date the landlord made its application to the Tribunal.

How much is owed for rent?

The tenancy ends on 5 August 2024 because the landlord cannot, pursuant to section 138(1)(a) of the District Court Act 2016, enforce the eviction order for 48 hours, and is unlikely to be able to take possession of the premise until Monday 5 August 2024. This gives the tenant time to move any belongings out of the premise that he wants to retain.
The landlord provided rent records which prove the amount owing at the end of the tenancy.

Tenancy Tribunal case 4933613 — Rent arrears at 54 Heathcote Street, Woolston, Christchurch 8023

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 4933613 — Rent arrears at 54 Heathcote Street, Woolston, Christchurch 8023

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Should the tenancy be terminated?

How much is owed for rent?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Should the tenancy be terminated?

How much is owed for rent?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions