What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5444731 about?

The tribunal order states: An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal

How much money was awarded in case 5444731?

____________________________________…: $780.00 awarded to landlord; Break Lease Costs: $920.00 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $28.00 awarded to landlord; Power: $45.15 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5444731?

The dispute type was not classified.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5444731?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/13344374-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

What was Tenancy Tribunal case 5444731 about?

The tribunal order states: An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal

How much money was awarded in case 5444731?

____________________________________…: $780.00 awarded to landlord; Break Lease Costs: $920.00 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $28.00 awarded to landlord; Power: $45.15 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5444731?

The dispute type was not classified.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5444731?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/13344374-Tribunal_Order_Redacted.pdf.

New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 5444731 — Tenancy dispute

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New Zealand Tenancy Tribunal Case 5444731 — Tenancy dispute | TenantCheck

Claims & awards

What this tenancy cost at tribunal — claim, category, amount, and party awarded, with reconciled net total.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5444731 — net $213.15 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
__________________________________________________________________________________ 54447312 Rent to 25 March 2026	$780.00	__________________________________________________________________________________ 54447312 Rent to 25 March 2026
Break lease costs	$920.00	Break lease costs
Power to 3 March 2026	$45.15	Power to 3 March 2026
Filing fee	$28.00	Filing fee
Net award	$213.15
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$213.15

Claims and awards for application 5444731 — net $213.15 NZD. Verify on MoJ.

__________________________________________________________________________________ 54447312 Rent to 25 March 2026

Amount: $780.00
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: __________________________________________________________________________________ 54447312 Rent to 25 March 2026

Break lease costs

Amount: $920.00
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: Break lease costs

Power to 3 March 2026

Amount: $45.15
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: Power to 3 March 2026

Filing fee

Amount: $28.00
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: Filing fee

Net award

Landlord $213.15

Total payable by Tenant to Landlord

Landlord $213.15

Claim types — money lines allowed on this order

Filing Fee

Order

An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the tenant’s and landlord’s names and identifying details.
[The tenant/s] must pay [The landlord/s] $213.15, calculated as shown in the table below.
The tenant must pay the debt in Order 2 at the rate of $53.29 per week.
The first payment must be made by 5pm on Thursday 26 March 2016 and payments must continue every week before 5pm on Thursday until the debt is paid in full.
If the tenant fails to make any payment within 2 working days of the due date, the balance of the debt owing will be payable immediately and can be enforced through the District Court.
The term of the fixed-term tenancy of [The tenant/s] at [Tenancy address suppressed] is reduced and ends on 25 March 2026.
The bond of $1,560.00 will be paid to the landlord by the Bond Centre immediately.

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing today by videoconference.
The tenant applied for reduction of the fixed-term tenancy due to end on 31 October 2026.
The Tribunal may reduce a fixed term tenancy pursuant to section 66(1) of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (the Act) where: a. There has been an unforeseen change in the applicant’s circumstances; and b. There would be severe hardship to the applicant if the term is not reduced; and c. The applicant’s hardship would be greater than the hardship to the other party if the term is reduced.
After discussion it was agreed that the tenancy should be reduced. I consider that there were clear grounds for a reduction in the fixed term. The tenant did not anticipate that her WINZ benefit would be reduced below the weekly rent of $390.00 when she became a full-time student. She cannot afford the rent, let alone other living expenses. There has been an unforeseen change in the tenant's circumstances causing severe hardship.
Where the Tribunal reduces a fixed-term tenancy, it may order the tenant to pay the landlord reasonable compensation for any resulting loss. After discussion it was agreed that reducing the fixed-term tenancy included an element of compensation for the landlord. The Tribunal also awards advertising and other break lease costs as itemised by the landlord (see section 42A of the Act). This enables the parties to move on from this tenancy even though replacement tenants have not yet been found.
The landlord is awarded the filing fee as agreed. Although the tenant has successfully applied for the tenancy to be reduced, the landlord has essentially agreed to limit its claim to the bond, despite uncertainty in terms of the success of ongoing marketing. In those circumstances, I do not think it is unreasonable that the landlord recovers the filing fee as part of the resolution of this matter.
Suppression is granted to both parties, as requested. I accept that this was a case of genuine financial difficulty for the tenant and her privacy interest outweighs any public interest in this case.

Claims & awards

What this tenancy cost at tribunal — claim, category, amount, and party awarded, with reconciled net total.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5444731 — net $213.15 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
__________________________________________________________________________________ 54447312 Rent to 25 March 2026	$780.00	__________________________________________________________________________________ 54447312 Rent to 25 March 2026
Break lease costs	$920.00	Break lease costs
Power to 3 March 2026	$45.15	Power to 3 March 2026
Filing fee	$28.00	Filing fee
Net award	$213.15
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$213.15

Claims and awards for application 5444731 — net $213.15 NZD. Verify on MoJ.

__________________________________________________________________________________ 54447312 Rent to 25 March 2026

Amount: $780.00
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: __________________________________________________________________________________ 54447312 Rent to 25 March 2026

Break lease costs

Amount: $920.00
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: Break lease costs

Power to 3 March 2026

Amount: $45.15
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: Power to 3 March 2026

Filing fee

Amount: $28.00
Awarded to: Landlord
Reason: Filing fee

Net award

Landlord $213.15

Total payable by Tenant to Landlord

Landlord $213.15

Claim types — money lines allowed on this order

Filing Fee

Order

An application for suppression has been made in this case, and the Tribunal orders suppression of the tenant’s and landlord’s names and identifying details.
[The tenant/s] must pay [The landlord/s] $213.15, calculated as shown in the table below.
The tenant must pay the debt in Order 2 at the rate of $53.29 per week.
The first payment must be made by 5pm on Thursday 26 March 2016 and payments must continue every week before 5pm on Thursday until the debt is paid in full.
If the tenant fails to make any payment within 2 working days of the due date, the balance of the debt owing will be payable immediately and can be enforced through the District Court.
The term of the fixed-term tenancy of [The tenant/s] at [Tenancy address suppressed] is reduced and ends on 25 March 2026.
The bond of $1,560.00 will be paid to the landlord by the Bond Centre immediately.

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing today by videoconference.
The tenant applied for reduction of the fixed-term tenancy due to end on 31 October 2026.
The Tribunal may reduce a fixed term tenancy pursuant to section 66(1) of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (the Act) where: a. There has been an unforeseen change in the applicant’s circumstances; and b. There would be severe hardship to the applicant if the term is not reduced; and c. The applicant’s hardship would be greater than the hardship to the other party if the term is reduced.
After discussion it was agreed that the tenancy should be reduced. I consider that there were clear grounds for a reduction in the fixed term. The tenant did not anticipate that her WINZ benefit would be reduced below the weekly rent of $390.00 when she became a full-time student. She cannot afford the rent, let alone other living expenses. There has been an unforeseen change in the tenant's circumstances causing severe hardship.
Where the Tribunal reduces a fixed-term tenancy, it may order the tenant to pay the landlord reasonable compensation for any resulting loss. After discussion it was agreed that reducing the fixed-term tenancy included an element of compensation for the landlord. The Tribunal also awards advertising and other break lease costs as itemised by the landlord (see section 42A of the Act). This enables the parties to move on from this tenancy even though replacement tenants have not yet been found.
The landlord is awarded the filing fee as agreed. Although the tenant has successfully applied for the tenancy to be reduced, the landlord has essentially agreed to limit its claim to the bond, despite uncertainty in terms of the success of ongoing marketing. In those circumstances, I do not think it is unreasonable that the landlord recovers the filing fee as part of the resolution of this matter.
Suppression is granted to both parties, as requested. I accept that this was a case of genuine financial difficulty for the tenant and her privacy interest outweighs any public interest in this case.

Tenancy Tribunal case 5444731 — Tenancy dispute

At a glance

Award balance

Tenancy Tribunal case 5444731 — Tenancy dispute

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Frequently asked questions

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Frequently asked questions