Published tribunal order
Tenancy Tribunal case 5158751 — Rent arrears at 19A Chippendale Crescent, Birkdale, Auckland 0626
Decided 2 Apr 2025 · Published 2 Apr 2025 · Application 5158751
- Rent arrears
- 14-day notice
Order
- [The tenant/s] owes Kāinga Ora–Homes And Communities $9,958.59 (“the debt”), being rent arrears to 7 April 2025.
- [The tenant/s] must pay rent and the debt as follows: a. By weekly payments of $179.00, being $159.00 for weekly rent and $20.00 towards the debt, starting next on Tuesday 8 April 2025 and on every Tuesday after that until the debt is paid in full.
- Payments will be allocated in the following order: rent, and rent arrears.
- If the tenant fails to pay rent and rent arrears within 2 working days of the due dates: a. The tenancy at 19A Chippendale Crescent, Birkdale, Auckland 0626 will terminate and the landlord will have immediate possession of the premises. b. The balance of the debt will be payable immediately.
- The Mediator’s order made in application 4500485 on 25 May 2023, sealed on 31 May 2023, is replaced with this order.
Reasons
- Ms Smith, representing the landlord, attended the teleconference hearing. The phone number provided for the tenant, the last three digits being 379, was called twice. On both calls, the phone was answered but nobody would speak or respond. As it was unknown who had answered the phone, the calls could not proceed further. As the tenant was served, the hearing proceeded in her absence.
- The landlord has applied for termination of the tenancy and rent arrears. The landlord said the tenant wants to repay the debt to avoid immediate termination. The landlord requested a conditional termination order and indicated the tenant had started making consistent weekly rent payments with an extra $20.00 per week towards the debt since January 2025. The landlord said they understood the tenant had finished work and experienced some financial difficulty for a period from November 2024 to January 2025 but indicated that rent is now being paid directly from the Ministry of Social Development. As such, the landlord was confident that rent payments would continue consistently.
- The landlord provided rent records that showed the tenant owes $9,958.59 in rent arrears to 7 April 2025.
Should a conditional termination order be made?
- Where rent is at least 21 days in arrears on the date the application was filed, the Tribunal must make either a final or a conditional termination order. See section 55(1)(a) and (1A) Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (“RTA”).
- I am satisfied the tenant will pay the debt within the period specified in the order and is unlikely to commit any further relevant breach. I have granted a conditional termination order.
- The conditional termination order will lapse if it is fully complied with. If the tenant breaches the order, the possession order may be enforced for 90 days from the first breach. See section 64(4)(b) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
- The Mediator’s order made in application 4500485 on 25 May 2023, sealed on 31 May 2023, is replaced with this order. Suppression
- The landlord requested name suppression on behalf of the tenant. As the tenant did not attend the hearing to request this on her own behalf, and without any further evidence as to whether such a request meets the test set out in section 95A(4) of the RTA, I do not grant name suppression to the tenant.