What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5151356 about?

The tribunal order states: [The tenant/s] must pay [The landlord/s] $123.80 immediately, calculated as

How much money was awarded in case 5151356?

Cleaning: $350.00 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $27.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $238.63 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $2,690.29 awarded to landlord; Rubbish Removal: $117.88 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5151356?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears. Related themes: Cleanliness, Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5151356?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/11739220-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5151356 about?

The tribunal order states: [The tenant/s] must pay [The landlord/s] $123.80 immediately, calculated as

How much money was awarded in case 5151356?

Cleaning: $350.00 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $27.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $238.63 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $2,690.29 awarded to landlord; Rubbish Removal: $117.88 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5151356?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears. Related themes: Cleanliness, Property damage.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5151356?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/11739220-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 5151356 — Rent arrears

Order

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5151356 — net $123.80 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears to 4/11/24	$2,690.29	Rent arrears to 4/11/24
Cleaning	$350.00	Cleaning
Rubbish removal	$117.88	Rubbish removal
Window repairs	$238.63	Window repairs
Filing fee reimbursement	$27.00	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$123.80
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$123.80

[The tenant/s] must pay [The landlord/s] $123.80 immediately, calculated as shown in table below.

The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $3,300.00 ([Bond number suppressed]) to [The landlord/s] immediately.

Applications for suppression have been made and the Tribunal directs that the identifying details of the landlord, [Tenant 1] and [Tenant 2] are to be suppressed from the published order.

All other claims are dismissed.

Reasons

[The landlord’s representative] represented the landlord at the hearing. [Tenant 1] and [Tenant 2] attended. Ms Finch did not attend and did not answer the calls made to her phone at the time of the hearing. She had been served with the Notice of Hearing.

The landlord has applied for rent arrears, compensation, refund of the bond, and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy.

How much is owed for rent?

The tenancy ended on 4 November 2024. The landlord provided rent records which prove the amount owing at the end of the tenancy. This amount is agreed to by the tenants.

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. See section 40(1)(e)(ii)-(v) 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.

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. 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.

The landlord has established in evidence that the tenant did not leave the premises reasonably clean and tidy and did not remove all rubbish. The rubbish removal claim is agreed to.

I accept however the tenants’ evidence that they did clean the house and carpet to an extent. They had trouble accessing one section of the house which had been left by departing tenants who vacated the tenancy utilising the family violence provisions in the RTA.

The claim for cleaning I consider excessive bearing in mind the statutory standard. Firstly, the invoice notes a deep clean which would take the home to a state higher than statutorily required of tenants. The photographic evidence does indicate further cleaning was required in the kitchen and bathrooms and on some doors. It is not justified to seven hours, however.

Accordingly, I award $350 which is considered more reasonable in the circumstances and in consideration of the evidence.

Carpet cleaning is sought for odour removal however the invoice from the carpet cleaners’ references stain removal and there are no photos of stains. The invoice does not reference odour. The tenants had cleaned the majority of the carpets with their own cleaner.

Fair wear and tear is the expected toll taken on a house that comes from usual living. It is manifest that when a landlord rents premises to a tenant, that the tenants will live in the dwelling, and in the process cause some wear and tear. As far as carpets are concerned, it would be expected there may be some minor markings after residence for a two-year period. That is an incident of people living in the premises, and that damage (wear and tear) is ‘compensated’ by way of the rent payments the landlord receives.

I do not find it established in evidence that a carpet clean of the entire property was required. The onus of proof lies with the landlord as applicant, and I do not consider it met here. Accordingly, this claim is dismissed.

The tenants agree to pay the invoice for the broken window. Although they are not sure how this happened, they accept that it occurred during their tenancy. Other orders.

Because [The landlord/s] has substantially succeeded with the claim I have reimbursed the filing fee and approved their claim for suppression.

As [Tenant 1] and [Tenant 2] attended the hearing and consented to several orders, I consider it just according to section 95A of the RTA that their details also be suppressed from the published order.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5151356 — net $123.80 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears to 4/11/24	$2,690.29	Rent arrears to 4/11/24
Cleaning	$350.00	Cleaning
Rubbish removal	$117.88	Rubbish removal
Window repairs	$238.63	Window repairs
Filing fee reimbursement	$27.00	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$123.80
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$123.80

Order

[The tenant/s] must pay [The landlord/s] $123.80 immediately, calculated as shown in table below.
The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $3,300.00 ([Bond number suppressed]) to [The landlord/s] immediately.
Applications for suppression have been made and the Tribunal directs that the identifying details of the landlord, [Tenant 1] and [Tenant 2] are to be suppressed from the published order.
All other claims are dismissed.

Reasons

[The landlord’s representative] represented the landlord at the hearing. [Tenant 1] and [Tenant 2] attended. Ms Finch did not attend and did not answer the calls made to her phone at the time of the hearing. She had been served with the Notice of Hearing.
The landlord has applied for rent arrears, compensation, refund of the bond, and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy.

How much is owed for rent?

The tenancy ended on 4 November 2024. The landlord provided rent records which prove the amount owing at the end of the tenancy. This amount is agreed to by the tenants.

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. See section 40(1)(e)(ii)-(v) 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.
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. 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.
The landlord has established in evidence that the tenant did not leave the premises reasonably clean and tidy and did not remove all rubbish. The rubbish removal claim is agreed to.
I accept however the tenants’ evidence that they did clean the house and carpet to an extent. They had trouble accessing one section of the house which had been left by departing tenants who vacated the tenancy utilising the family violence provisions in the RTA.
The claim for cleaning I consider excessive bearing in mind the statutory standard. Firstly, the invoice notes a deep clean which would take the home to a state higher than statutorily required of tenants. The photographic evidence does indicate further cleaning was required in the kitchen and bathrooms and on some doors. It is not justified to seven hours, however.
Accordingly, I award $350 which is considered more reasonable in the circumstances and in consideration of the evidence.
Carpet cleaning is sought for odour removal however the invoice from the carpet cleaners’ references stain removal and there are no photos of stains. The invoice does not reference odour. The tenants had cleaned the majority of the carpets with their own cleaner.
Fair wear and tear is the expected toll taken on a house that comes from usual living. It is manifest that when a landlord rents premises to a tenant, that the tenants will live in the dwelling, and in the process cause some wear and tear. As far as carpets are concerned, it would be expected there may be some minor markings after residence for a two-year period. That is an incident of people living in the premises, and that damage (wear and tear) is ‘compensated’ by way of the rent payments the landlord receives.
I do not find it established in evidence that a carpet clean of the entire property was required. The onus of proof lies with the landlord as applicant, and I do not consider it met here. Accordingly, this claim is dismissed.
The tenants agree to pay the invoice for the broken window. Although they are not sure how this happened, they accept that it occurred during their tenancy. Other orders.
Because [The landlord/s] has substantially succeeded with the claim I have reimbursed the filing fee and approved their claim for suppression.
As [Tenant 1] and [Tenant 2] attended the hearing and consented to several orders, I consider it just according to section 95A of the RTA that their details also be suppressed from the published order.

Tenancy Tribunal case 5151356 — Rent arrears

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 5151356 — Rent arrears

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Dismissed claims

Order

Reasons

How much is owed for rent?

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

Dismissed claims

Order

Reasons

How much is owed for rent?

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

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions