Tenantcheck Insights · Case study
Tenancy Tribunal case 5353122 — Rent arrears at 17 Epsom Avenue, Epsom, Auckland 1023
Decided 12 Nov 2025 · Published 12 Nov 2025 · Application 5353122
- Rent arrears
- Property damage
At a glance
Key facts from the published tribunal order.
Location
Auckland
Tribunal region
Adjudicator
C Price
Dispute themes
Award balance
Gross awards, any bond applied per the order, and the remaining balance payable.
- Gross award
- $2,366.60
- Total balance for Tenant to pay Landlord
- $2,366.60
Claims & awards
What this tenancy cost at tribunal — claim, category, amount, and party awarded, with reconciled net total.
| Claim | Landlord | Tenant | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lock/key replacement | $299.00 | Lock/key replacement | |
| Filing fee | $28.00 | Filing fee | |
| Rent arrears from 31.7.2025 to 7.8.2025 | $1,017.14 | Rent arrears from 31.7.2025 to 7.8.2025 | |
| Water rates: final bill | $22.46 | Water rates: final bill | |
| Rubbish removal |
Order
- [The tenant/s] tenant/s] must pay Ihome Property Management Limited As Agents For Chen Hui $2,366.60 immediately, calculated as shown in table below.
- All other claims are dismissed.
Reasons
- Ms Pan, representing the landlord, attended the video conference hearing. The tenant’s phone number, the last three digits being 438, was called twice without any response. As the tenant was served, the hearing proceeded in her absence.
- The landlord has applied for rent arrears, compensation, outgoings, and reimbursement of the filing fee following the end of the tenancy.
- The landlord made an earlier application 5280564, resulting in a Tribunal order dated 30 July 2025, which ordered termination of the tenancy and rent arrears and water rates to 30 July 2025.
How much is owed for rent and water rates?
- The landlord said that, despite the termination order for immediate possession dated 30 July 2025, the tenant had to be evicted, which occurred on 7 August 2025. Thus, the landlord said the tenancy ended on 7 August 2025.
- The landlord claimed rent from 31 July 2025 (the date after the Tribunal order dated 30 July 2025 in application 5280564) to 7 August 2025, a total of 8 days. Rent was $890.00 per week and so was $127.14 daily. So, one week’s rent @ $890.00 plus one day @ $127.14 comes to $1,017.14.
- As the Tribunal ordered water rates to 30 July 2025 in application 5280564, the landlord only claimed the amount of the final water bill at the end of the tenancy, less any credits owing to the tenants, which post-dated the Tribunal order in application 5280564, in the amount of $22.46. The landlord provided water invoices and a ledger proving this amount. Therefore, I award the landlord $22.46 for the final water bill.
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. The tenant is required to replace worn out smoke alarm batteries during the tenancy. See section 40(1)(ca) Residential Tenancies Act 1986. The tenant must also replace standard light bulbs.
- The landlord said the tenant did not leave the premises reasonably clean and tidy and did not remove all rubbish. Carpet cleaning
- The landlord said the tenant had 2 dogs and a cat and the carpet was left smelly at the end of the tenancy. The landlord provided an invoice for carpet cleaning in the amount of $356.50 and claimed this amount for carpet cleaning. However, the landlord did not provide additional supporting evidence for this claim, such as the final inspection report noting the condition of the carpet, nor comment from the carpet cleaners or others about the issues with the carpet, nor correspondence with the tenant about this. There were also no photographs provided of the carpet at the end of the tenancy. As such, I find the landlord has not proved sufficient evidence to prove this claim and so dismiss this claim. Rubbish removal
- The landlord provided several photographs they said were taken on 8 August 2025, the day after the tenants left the property. The landlord said the tenants moved all their belongings outside. The photographs showed a significant amount of rubbish left outside and in the garage by the tenants, including large furniture, mattresses, wheelbarrow, shelving, numerous plastic boxes and bags of rubbish, chilly bin, tools, toys garden waste, rugs, bike, planters, plastic netting, road cone and many other items.
- The landlord provided an invoice for rubbish removal for $1,000.00, which was $400.00 for labour to remove all the rubbish and hire fees for 2 x 9 cubic metre skip bins.
- Given the photographs of the significant amount of rubbish left at the property by the tenants, including a number of large and heavy items, I find the cost claimed for rubbish removal to be reasonable. Therefore, I award the landlord $1,000.00 for rubbish removal at the end of the tenancy. Locks
- The landlord said that, as the tenant was evicted, the locks had to be changed for the front and back doors. The landlord provided photographs of the locks and an invoice from a locksmith in the amount of $299.00. Given the evidence, I find the landlord needed to change the locks and that the amount claimed for this is reasonable. As such, I award the landlord $299.00 to change the locks at the end of the tenancy.
- The amounts ordered are proved. Eviction cost claim
- The landlord claimed for an eviction fee of $267.00. This claim relates to the cost of enforcement of an order in the earlier application 5280564, and is more appropriately dealt with as a cost to be added onto that earlier Tribunal order dated 30 July 2025 in application 5280564. The eviction cost incurred is not related to any claims in this application. Therefore, this claim is dismissed. Filing fee
- Because Ihome Property Management Limited As Agents For Chen Hui has wholly succeeded with the claim I must reimburse the filing fee.
Topics & place
Topics are dispute themes across the order (not the same as claim-type money lines).
Residential Tenancies Act sections
s13, s40(1)
Key findings
- Dispute theme: property damage
- Dispute theme: rent arrears
Property management
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about this Tenancy Tribunal case.
What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5353122 about?
The tribunal order states: [The tenant/s] tenant/s] must pay Ihome Property Management Limited As
How much money was awarded in case 5353122?
Filing Fee: $28.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $299.00 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $1,017.14 awarded to landlord; Rubbish Removal: $1,000.00 awarded to landlord; Water Rates: $22.46 awarded to landlord
What type of tenancy dispute was case 5353122?
The primary dispute was Rent arrears. Related themes: Property damage.
Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5353122?
The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/12701569-Tenancy_Tribunal_Order.pdf.
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