Tenantcheck Insights · Case study
Tenancy Tribunal case 5412158 — Rent arrears at Flat A201, 320 Mansfield Street, Newtown, Wellington 6021,
Decided 24 February 2026 · Published 24 February 2026 · Application 5412158
Landlord favoured
- Rent arrears
At a glance
Key facts from the published tribunal order.
Outcome
Landlord favoured
From published order
Location
Wellington
Tribunal region
Adjudicator
N Maplesden
Dispute themes
Claims & awards
What this tenancy cost at tribunal — claim, category, amount, and party awarded, with reconciled net total.
| Claim | Landlord | Tenant | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent arrears to 01/03/2026 | $1,955.00 | Rent arrears to 01/03/2026 | |
| Filing fee reimbursement | $28.00 | Filing fee reimbursement |
Claims and awards for application 5412158. Verify on MoJ.
Rent arrears to 01/03/2026
- Amount
- $1,955.00
- Awarded to
- Landlord
- Reason
- Rent arrears to 01/03/2026
Filing fee reimbursement
- Amount
- $28.00
- Awarded to
- Landlord
- Reason
- Filing fee reimbursement
Claim types — money lines allowed on this order
Order
- Zalamara Tahata owes Te Toi Mahana $1,983.00 (“the debt”).
- Zalamara Tahata must pay rent and the debt as follows: a. By 39 weekly payments of $273.00, being $223.00 for rent and $50.00 for the debt. b. A final payment of $256.00, being $223.00 for rent and $33.00 for the debt. c. Payments will be every Wednesday, with the first payment on 25/02/2026 and continuing until 25/11/2026.
- Payments will be allocated in the following order: rent, rent arrears, and the filing fee.
- If the tenant fails to pay rent and rent arrears within 2 working days of the due dates: a. The tenancy at Flat A201, 320 Mansfield Street, Newtown, Wellington 6021, Newtown Park Flats will terminate and the landlord will have immediate possession of the premises. b. The balance of the debt will be payable immediately.
- If the tenant fails to pay the filing fee within 2 working days of the due date, the filing fee will be payable immediately.
Reasons
- A representative for the landlord attended the hearing held remotely today. The tenant did not attend and could not be reached by telephone.
- I note that the tenant has been sent email notice of the hearing but that his email address is not an address for service. Text reminders have also been sent.
- I did continue the hearing in the tenant’s absence because the landlord has requested that an existing payment arrangement continue but at a lower rate of repayment. In other words, this order is favourable to the tenant.
- If the tenant did not know about the hearing and disagrees with it, he may apply for a rehearing (see the back of this form).
What has the landlord applied for?
- The landlord has applied for an order to formalise a repayment arrangement for rent arrears and that if any weekly payment is more than 2 days late, the landlord would have the right to terminate the tenancy.
- The law says that when 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.
- The landlord has provided a rent ledger proving the rent was at least 21 days in arrears when the application was made and that there is $1,955.00 owing up to Sunday 1 March 2026.
Should a conditional termination order be made?
- The landlord explained that this is a long tenancy and that the income related rent has been reduced recently to better reflect the tenant’s income. The rent is now $273.00 per week.
- A lump sum payment was made towards the debt in mid-January, but rent was not paid for a few weeks in both December 2025 and in January.
- The tenant has then paid $431.00 per week for the last three weeks.
- I agree to make a conditional termination order. The landlord suggests that an extra $50.00 be paid towards the debt. I agree to this.
- 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 tenant must pay weekly rent plus $50.00 towards the debt every Wednesday starting 25 February 2026.
- The conditional termination order will lapse if it is fully complied with.
- If the tenant breaches the order, the tenancy will terminate. The possession order may be enforced for 90 days from the first breach. See section 64(4)(b) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
- I award the filing fee to the landlord.
- No suppression orders apply. The landlord is a social housing provider receiving public funds, so the public interest is in transparency of its actions. The tenant is in rent arrears and with no other information available to me, there are no grounds to suppress his name.
Topics & place
Topics are dispute themes across the order (not the same as claim-type money lines).
Residential Tenancies Act sections
s55(1), s64(4)
Key findings
- Dispute theme: rent arrears
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about this Tenancy Tribunal case.
What was the outcome of Tenancy Tribunal case 5412158?
The tribunal order states: Zalamara Tahata owes Te Toi Mahana $1,983.00 (“the debt”).
How much money was awarded in case 5412158?
Filing Fee: $28.00 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $1,955.00 awarded to landlord
What type of tenancy dispute was case 5412158?
The primary dispute was Rent arrears.
Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5412158?
The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/13180449-Tenancy_Tribunal_Order.pdf.