What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5438294 about?

The tribunal order states: The Tribunal orders suppression of the tenancy address.

How much money was awarded in case 5438294?

Rent Of: $90.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5438294?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears. Related themes: 14-day notice.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5438294?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/13844582-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5438294 about?

The tribunal order states: The Tribunal orders suppression of the tenancy address.

How much money was awarded in case 5438294?

Rent Of: $90.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5438294?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears. Related themes: 14-day notice.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5438294?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/13844582-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 5438294 — Rent arrears

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5438294. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Tenant	Reason
rent of	$90.00		rent of

Order

The Tribunal orders suppression of the tenancy address.
The tenancy of [The tenant/s] at [Tenancy address suppressed] is terminated, and possession is granted to Kāinga Ora–Homes And Communities, at 2:00pm on Thursday 30 July 2026.
The landlord agrees that the tenant may terminate the tenancy on any date before the termination date by written email notice from the tenant or his authorised support person. No minimum notice period applies.
[The tenant/s] must pay Kāinga Ora–Homes And Communities $3,005.00 immediately, being rent arrears to 7 July 2026.
[The tenant/s] must pay Kāinga Ora–Homes And Communities weekly rent of $90.00 no later than 5:00pm on Wednesday 8 July 2026 and every Wednesday until the tenancy terminates.
This matter is decided by the orders above, but the landlord is granted leave until Friday 24 July 2026 to request that the application be brought back urgently before the Tribunal, if there is new evidence of more substantial damage to the premises. The Tribunal registry email is remote.tenancy@justice.govt.nz

Reasons

The landlord’s representative attended the hearing which was held remotely. The tenant and his support people also attended.
The landlord has applied to terminate this tenancy because it says the rent is a long way behind and there has been substantial damage to the premises.
The law says that a tenancy must be terminated if:- a. rent was at least 21 days in arrears on the date the application was filed; section 55(1)(a) of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (RTA), or b. the tenant has caused (or permitted any other person to cause), or has threatened to cause, substantial damage to the premises; s55(1)(b) RTA.

How much rent is owing and should the tenancy be terminated for this reason?

The landlord has provided rent records which prove the rent was at least 21 days behind on 4 February 2026, which was the date the application was filed.
The up-to-date rent records supplied for this hearing prove the amount owing up to 7 July 2026 is $3,005.00. This is more than 30 weeks of overdue rent.
The tenant and his family say they can pay the weekly rent and pay an additional amount each week to repay the debt, if the landlord would agree to keep the tenancy going.
In some circumstances the landlord and the Tribunal can agree to this and make a “conditional termination order”; see section 55(1A) RTA.
Neither the landlord nor the Tribunal agree to a conditional termination order in this case. Has there been substantial damage to the premises and should the tenancy be terminated for this reason?
The landlord has provided photos of the premises taken in May and June 2026.
The photos prove there is substantial damage to the inside of the premises.
The substantial damage consists of large holes in the walls of the living room, kitchen, hallway and the two bedrooms. Some of the holes go right through the wall so that the next room can be seen. A large section of gib board has been removed between the kitchen and living room and the internal wall framing is left visible.
The landlord has supplied a written quote (based on photographs of the damage) which estimates that repairs could cost up to $20,000.00 to repair.
The tenant agrees that he caused the substantial damage.
After hearing from the tenant and his support people, I accept that there were probably medical reasons that caused or contributed to him doing the damage.
The tenant says he can arrange to have the damage repaired. He would like to stay at this house.
My decision is that the tenancy must be terminated because of the substantial damage.
This is because the law only allows the Tribunal to decide to continue the tenancy if any damage has already been fully remedied, the landlord has been compensated for any loss, and it is unlikely there will be a future breach of the same kind; s55(2) RTA.
The damage has not been remedied. I agree with the landlord that there is a risk that there may be more substantial damage if the tenant becomes unwell again.
I agree to delay the termination of the tenancy until 30 July 2026 because the tenant has support people to help him with his wellbeing and to find new accommodation.
The tenant can give written notice to the landlord to terminate the tenancy on any earlier date.
The tenant must pay the weekly rent starting from Wednesday 8 July 2026 until the tenancy ends.
The tenant must pay the rent arrears of $3,005.00.
If the landlord becomes aware of any new substantial damage to the premises, it may request that the Tribunal schedule an urgent hearing to consider immediate and earlier termination of the tenancy.
I make no suppression orders.
The Tribunal must usually suppress the name of a party that has been wholly or substantially successful in proceedings but also considers the public interest and conduct of the parties. The landlord is the government social housing provider so there is a public interest in its actions because it is responsible for the use of taxpayer’s funds. My decision is that publication of the landlord’s name is in the public interest, so it is not suppressed; s95A(1) RTA.
The tenant has breached the RTA. The reasons for this are not straightforward and I have considered his interests both in privacy and in obtaining future housing. My decision is that the extent of the damage means the public interest outweighs his interests in this case; s95A(4) RTA.
I suppress the tenancy address to protect the tenant’s privacy until the tenancy terminates.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5438294. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Tenant	Reason
rent of	$90.00		rent of

Order

The Tribunal orders suppression of the tenancy address.
The tenancy of [The tenant/s] at [Tenancy address suppressed] is terminated, and possession is granted to Kāinga Ora–Homes And Communities, at 2:00pm on Thursday 30 July 2026.
The landlord agrees that the tenant may terminate the tenancy on any date before the termination date by written email notice from the tenant or his authorised support person. No minimum notice period applies.
[The tenant/s] must pay Kāinga Ora–Homes And Communities $3,005.00 immediately, being rent arrears to 7 July 2026.
[The tenant/s] must pay Kāinga Ora–Homes And Communities weekly rent of $90.00 no later than 5:00pm on Wednesday 8 July 2026 and every Wednesday until the tenancy terminates.
This matter is decided by the orders above, but the landlord is granted leave until Friday 24 July 2026 to request that the application be brought back urgently before the Tribunal, if there is new evidence of more substantial damage to the premises. The Tribunal registry email is remote.tenancy@justice.govt.nz

Reasons

The landlord’s representative attended the hearing which was held remotely. The tenant and his support people also attended.
The landlord has applied to terminate this tenancy because it says the rent is a long way behind and there has been substantial damage to the premises.
The law says that a tenancy must be terminated if:- a. rent was at least 21 days in arrears on the date the application was filed; section 55(1)(a) of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (RTA), or b. the tenant has caused (or permitted any other person to cause), or has threatened to cause, substantial damage to the premises; s55(1)(b) RTA.

How much rent is owing and should the tenancy be terminated for this reason?

The landlord has provided rent records which prove the rent was at least 21 days behind on 4 February 2026, which was the date the application was filed.
The up-to-date rent records supplied for this hearing prove the amount owing up to 7 July 2026 is $3,005.00. This is more than 30 weeks of overdue rent.
The tenant and his family say they can pay the weekly rent and pay an additional amount each week to repay the debt, if the landlord would agree to keep the tenancy going.
In some circumstances the landlord and the Tribunal can agree to this and make a “conditional termination order”; see section 55(1A) RTA.
Neither the landlord nor the Tribunal agree to a conditional termination order in this case. Has there been substantial damage to the premises and should the tenancy be terminated for this reason?
The landlord has provided photos of the premises taken in May and June 2026.
The photos prove there is substantial damage to the inside of the premises.
The substantial damage consists of large holes in the walls of the living room, kitchen, hallway and the two bedrooms. Some of the holes go right through the wall so that the next room can be seen. A large section of gib board has been removed between the kitchen and living room and the internal wall framing is left visible.
The landlord has supplied a written quote (based on photographs of the damage) which estimates that repairs could cost up to $20,000.00 to repair.
The tenant agrees that he caused the substantial damage.
After hearing from the tenant and his support people, I accept that there were probably medical reasons that caused or contributed to him doing the damage.
The tenant says he can arrange to have the damage repaired. He would like to stay at this house.
My decision is that the tenancy must be terminated because of the substantial damage.
This is because the law only allows the Tribunal to decide to continue the tenancy if any damage has already been fully remedied, the landlord has been compensated for any loss, and it is unlikely there will be a future breach of the same kind; s55(2) RTA.
The damage has not been remedied. I agree with the landlord that there is a risk that there may be more substantial damage if the tenant becomes unwell again.
I agree to delay the termination of the tenancy until 30 July 2026 because the tenant has support people to help him with his wellbeing and to find new accommodation.
The tenant can give written notice to the landlord to terminate the tenancy on any earlier date.
The tenant must pay the weekly rent starting from Wednesday 8 July 2026 until the tenancy ends.
The tenant must pay the rent arrears of $3,005.00.
If the landlord becomes aware of any new substantial damage to the premises, it may request that the Tribunal schedule an urgent hearing to consider immediate and earlier termination of the tenancy.
I make no suppression orders.
The Tribunal must usually suppress the name of a party that has been wholly or substantially successful in proceedings but also considers the public interest and conduct of the parties. The landlord is the government social housing provider so there is a public interest in its actions because it is responsible for the use of taxpayer’s funds. My decision is that publication of the landlord’s name is in the public interest, so it is not suppressed; s95A(1) RTA.
The tenant has breached the RTA. The reasons for this are not straightforward and I have considered his interests both in privacy and in obtaining future housing. My decision is that the extent of the damage means the public interest outweighs his interests in this case; s95A(4) RTA.
I suppress the tenancy address to protect the tenant’s privacy until the tenancy terminates.

Tenancy Tribunal case 5438294 — Rent arrears

At a glance

Claims & awards

Tenancy Tribunal case 5438294 — Rent arrears

At a glance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

How much rent is owing and should the tenancy be terminated for this reason?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Property management

Frequently asked questions

Order

Reasons

How much rent is owing and should the tenancy be terminated for this reason?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Property management

Frequently asked questions