Tenantcheck Insights · Case study
Tenancy Tribunal case 9079864 — Tenancy dispute in Te Aro, Wellington
Decided 17 Jul 2026 · Published 17 Jul 2026 · Application 9079864
- Costs
- Interest
- Unit Titles
At a glance
Key facts from the published tribunal order.
Location
Wellington
Tribunal region
Adjudicator
N Maplesden
Dispute themes
Award balance
Gross awards, any bond applied per the order, and the remaining balance payable.
- Gross award
- $23,247.26
- Total balance for Tenant to pay Landlord
- $23,247.26
Claims & awards
What this tenancy cost at tribunal — claim, category, amount, and party awarded, with reconciled net total.
| Claim | Landlord | Tenant | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| Costs: Legal services - Levies Repayment Agreement INV 216368 | $1,033.95 | Costs: Legal services - Levies Repayment Agreement INV 216368 | |
| Costs: Legal services - Levies Recovery INV 219110 | $7,351.42 | Costs: Legal services - Levies Recovery INV 219110 | |
| Costs: Legal services - Levies Recovery INV 221931 | $757.10 | Costs: Legal services - Levies Recovery INV 221931 | |
| Interest: on all unpaid levies to 31/05/2026 | $3,083.58 |
Order
- [The party] must pay Body Corporate 556592 $23,247.26, calculated as follows: DescriptionsApplicantRespondent Unpaid levies 1/12/2024 to 31/07/2026$8,259.59 Costs: Legal services - Levies Repayment Agreement INV 216368 $1,033.95 Costs: Legal services - Levies Recovery INV 219110 $7,351.42 Costs: Legal services - Levies Recovery INV 221931 $757.10 Costs: Legal services - Levies Recovery$2,261.62 Filing Fee$500.00 Interest: on all unpaid levies to 31/05/2026 $3,083.58 Total payable by Respondent to Applicant $23,247.26
- The Respondent must pay the debt in order 1 at the rate of $700.00 per fortnight.
- The first payment must be made on or before Friday 17 July 2026 and payments must continue every second Friday until the debt is paid in full.
- If the Respondent 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.
Reasons
- Both parties attended the remote hearing.
- The body corporate has applied for recovery of unpaid levies, interest, costs and the filing fee from the unit owner.
- I made an order after the hearing requiring additional evidence from the applicant to clarify the amounts claimed. The new evidence has been received and neither party has requested a second hearing. I now make the final order taking into consideration the new evidence.
Does the Unit Owner owe the levies claimed?
- A unit owner must pay all body corporate levies and outgoings payable for the unit. See sections 80(1)(f) and 121(1) Unit Titles Act 2010 (UTA).
- The body corporate has determined the levies payable, and the unit owner's share has been calculated according to their utility interest. Copies of the relevant body corporate minutes have been provided.
- The body corporate has fixed the due date for the levies to be paid, and the unit owner has not paid all levies by the due dates. See section 124(1) UTA.
- The body corporate has provided records to prove the amounts claimed. The owner does not dispute the claim.
- I am satisfied that the new evidence proves that the total outstanding for levies is $8,259.59 for the period from 1 December 2024 up to 31 July 2026. I award this amount.
Is the Unit owner liable for interest?
- If a unit owner fails to pay levies by the due date, interest accrues on the unpaid balance. A body corporate may charge interest up to 10% per annum. See section 128 UTA.
- The body corporate has resolved to charge interest at 10% per annum on unpaid levies.
- The Body Corporate has proved the amount of interest owing from the due date of each unpaid invoice up to the hearing date. Some of the interest relates to overdue levies from April 2023. The calculation of interest is managed by an external body corporate management company which provides access to all interest calculations to owners as it is invoiced.
- I accept that the amount owing for interest is proven. The owner does not dispute the interest calculations. I award the amount claimed for unpaid interest which is $3,083.58.
Is the Unit owner liable for costs?
- Pursuant to section 124 UTA, and as resolved at meetings of the Body Corporate, the Body Corporate is entitled to recover any reasonable costs incurred by it in collecting unpaid levies as a debt due by the owner to the Body Corporate.
- I agree with the submissions of the applicant, citing Body Corporate 45131 v 88 CHI Limited [2023] NZDC 9036, 12 May 2023, that recoverable costs include solicitor/client costs for work that was reasonably necessary and for which the amount claimed is objectively reasonable.
- It is the Tribunal’s role to assess whether the work done was reasonably necessary (by reviewing the tasks undertaken 1 ) and whether the amount charged to do that work was reasonable. The latter could include considering the time taken on the tasks and the hourly rates charged. The above District Court decision and others, such as Body Corporate 346799 v Gueirard, Vu [2023] NZDC 19645, say that Rule 9 of the Lawyers and Conveyancers Act (Lawyers: Conduct and Client Care) Rules is a useful reference point.
- The Body Corporate took reasonable steps by sending letters of demand to the owner throughout 2025. On 14 July 2025, the parties entered into an agreement to try to avoid these proceedings. The respondent did not make the payments promised under that agreement, so this recovery action was undertaken.
- I award the amount claimed for legal work from 18 September to 18 November 2025 related to the deferred recovery agreement and enforcement advice which is $1,033.95.
- I have reviewed the time and attendances records supplied by the applicant which give a dated breakdown of all legal work done from 15 January 2026 to the date of the hearing. The tasks undertaken include those reasonably to be expected including checking and reviewing the Body Corporate minutes and resolutions over the three years in question. If levies are to be claimed, all of this must be in order. 1 Such as receiving instructions, searching the title, checking resolutions in Body Corporate AGM Minutes and the lawfulness of the meetings, checking levy and other claimed invoices and demand letters, correspondence and attendances with the Body Corporate, any other settlement negotiations, preparation and filing of the Tenancy Tribunal claim and attendance at the Tenancy Tribunal hearing/s. A similar set of tasks were described in Body Corporate 45131 v 88 Chi Limited [2023] NZDC 9036, 12 May 2023 at paragraph 16.
- Attendances also include preparing and drafting all Tribunal documents and updating these for the hearing and communication with the Body Corporate and the respondent.
- The respondent raised no specific queries about the work done or amount charged, and I see no obviously unnecessary work.
- The time spent and hourly rate charged is reasonable for work of this type. I accept the proceedings were necessary in light of the time over which levies have remained unpaid and the fact that previous resolution efforts were unsuccessful.
- I award the amounts claimed for legal costs incurred by the applicant of $8,108.52 as proven by the invoices supplied.
- After discussion with the applicant, it was agreed to reduce the amount claimed for the final estimated invoice to account for hearing attendance of one hour (instead of the two hours claimed). This makes the final estimated invoice $2,261.62. I accept that additional work was required to respond to my interim order but make no allowance for this as it was required to rectify incorrect calculations.
- I am satisfied that the costs ordered above are reasonable.
- Because the Body Corporate has succeeded with the claim, I have also awarded recovery of the filing fee. Section 176(1) UTA and section 102(4) Residential Tenancies Act 1986. Time payment of debt
- The parties negotiated an agreed time payment of the total amount owing by the respondent. I record this as an order. If any payment is more than two working days late, the applicant may enforce the balance through the District Court.
Topics & place
Topics are dispute themes across the order (not the same as claim-type money lines).
Residential Tenancies Act sections
s0800, s1, s102(4), s124, s124(1), s128, s176(1), s80(1)
Key findings
- Dispute theme: unit titles
- Dispute theme: costs
- Dispute theme: interest
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about this Tenancy Tribunal case.
What was Tenancy Tribunal case 9079864 about?
The tribunal order states: [The party] must pay Body Corporate 556592 $23,247.26, calculated as
How much money was awarded in case 9079864?
Costs: Legal services - Levies Recov…: $2,261.62 awarded to landlord; Costs: Legal services - Levies Recov…: $7,351.42 awarded to landlord; Costs: Legal services - Levies Recov…: $757.10 awarded to landlord; Costs: Legal services - Levies Repay…: $1,033.95 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $500.00 awarded to landlord; Interest: on all unpaid levies to 31…: $3,083.58 awarded to landlord; Unpaid Levies 1/12/2024 To 31/07/202…: $8,259.59 awarded to landlord
What type of tenancy dispute was case 9079864?
The dispute type was not classified.
Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 9079864?
The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/13901352-UTA_Tribunal_Order.pdf.
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