What was the outcome of Tenancy Tribunal case 4903714?

The tribunal order states: Ronald Howard Marsha Simpson must pay Kāinga Ora–Homes and

How much money was awarded in case 4903714?

Rent Arrears: $2,379.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4903714?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4903714?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/10691885-Tenancy_Tribunal_Order.pdf.

What was the outcome of Tenancy Tribunal case 4903714?

The tribunal order states: Ronald Howard Marsha Simpson must pay Kāinga Ora–Homes and

How much money was awarded in case 4903714?

Rent Arrears: $2,379.00 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 4903714?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 4903714?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/10691885-Tenancy_Tribunal_Order.pdf.

49 Second Avenue, Avenues, Whangarei 0110 Tenancy Tribunal Case 4903714 — Rent arrears

Reasons

Background

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4903714 — net $2,379.00 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears to 12 August 2024	$2,379.00	3. The landlord’s rent record establishes rent arrears of $2,379.00 to 12 August
Net award	$2,379.00
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$2,379.00

The application seeks rent arrears and termination of the tenancy.

The hearing took place by phone on 9 August 2024. Ms Gray represented Kāinga Ora. Mr Simpson is currently incarcerated. Rent arrears

The landlord’s rent record establishes rent arrears of $2,379.00 to 12 August 2024.

The rent is $96.00 per week. The rent payments stopped in February 2024, presumably when Mr Simpson went into custody. Termination

The Tenancy Tribunal must terminate a tenancy if the rent was at least 21-days in arrears on the date that the landlord filed an application in the Tribunal seeking termination of the tenancy.

The rent was substantially more than 21-days in arrears on the date that this application was filed.

However, Ms Gray confirmed that Kāinga Ora does not seek termination on the grounds of rent arrears.

Kāinga Ora seeks termination on the grounds that “the tenant is in breach of the tenancy agreement [clauses] 14 and 15 which state that the tenant must live at the home at all times”, and “if this is not acceptable to the court, could we please have an Order for Abandonment – rent is in arrears”

Clauses 14 and 15 of the tenancy agreement state:

You must live at the home at all times. The home must only be used by you and your family who were part of your application.

If you are going to be away from the home for more than 30 days (for example, if you are on holiday or sick), you need to let us know

Mr Simpson has been away from the home for more than 30 days, but Kāinga Ora did not provide any evidence about when and how they became aware of Mr Simpson’s circumstances. It is not proven that Mr Simpson breached clause 15 by failing to let Kāinga Ora know.

Therefore, the only arguable breach is that Mr Simpson failed to “live at the home at all times”.

This clause cannot be interpreted as requiring the tenant to be at the house every day. Apart from being an unreasonable restriction on a person’s freedom of movement, that interpretation would be inconsistent with clause 15, which implies that a tenant could be away from the premises for a month, or even multiple months, without being in breach of the agreement provided that Kāinga Ora knows about the tenant being away.

My finding is that the first part of clause 14 must be understood in conjunction with the second part of that clause.

The purpose of the clause is to prevent tenants from obtaining a Kāinga Ora tenancy, allowing family or friends to live there, but not living there themselves.

That is not the case in this instance, and therefore I find that there is no proven breach of clauses 14 and 15 of the tenancy agreement.

There is also no basis for termination for abandonment. An abandonment occurs when a tenant leaves a tenancy with no intention to return. That can intention usually be inferred when a tenant leaves, takes their belongings, and cuts off contact with the landlord.

No such inference can be made in this instance. Mr Simpson is away from the tenancy involuntarily. It may be that he intends to return when he is able to.

Therefore the application for termination is dismissed.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 4903714 — net $2,379.00 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears to 12 August 2024	$2,379.00	3. The landlord’s rent record establishes rent arrears of $2,379.00 to 12 August
Net award	$2,379.00
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$2,379.00

Order

Ronald Howard Marsha Simpson must pay Kāinga Ora–Homes and Communities $2,379.00 immediately, being rent arrears to 2 August 2024.
The application for termination is dismissed.

Reasons

Background

The application seeks rent arrears and termination of the tenancy.
The hearing took place by phone on 9 August 2024. Ms Gray represented Kāinga Ora. Mr Simpson is currently incarcerated. Rent arrears
The landlord’s rent record establishes rent arrears of $2,379.00 to 12 August 2024.
The rent is $96.00 per week. The rent payments stopped in February 2024, presumably when Mr Simpson went into custody. Termination
The Tenancy Tribunal must terminate a tenancy if the rent was at least 21-days in arrears on the date that the landlord filed an application in the Tribunal seeking termination of the tenancy.
The rent was substantially more than 21-days in arrears on the date that this application was filed.
However, Ms Gray confirmed that Kāinga Ora does not seek termination on the grounds of rent arrears.
Kāinga Ora seeks termination on the grounds that “the tenant is in breach of the tenancy agreement [clauses] 14 and 15 which state that the tenant must live at the home at all times”, and “if this is not acceptable to the court, could we please have an Order for Abandonment – rent is in arrears”
Clauses 14 and 15 of the tenancy agreement state:
You must live at the home at all times. The home must only be used by you and your family who were part of your application.
If you are going to be away from the home for more than 30 days (for example, if you are on holiday or sick), you need to let us know
Mr Simpson has been away from the home for more than 30 days, but Kāinga Ora did not provide any evidence about when and how they became aware of Mr Simpson’s circumstances. It is not proven that Mr Simpson breached clause 15 by failing to let Kāinga Ora know.
Therefore, the only arguable breach is that Mr Simpson failed to “live at the home at all times”.
This clause cannot be interpreted as requiring the tenant to be at the house every day. Apart from being an unreasonable restriction on a person’s freedom of movement, that interpretation would be inconsistent with clause 15, which implies that a tenant could be away from the premises for a month, or even multiple months, without being in breach of the agreement provided that Kāinga Ora knows about the tenant being away.
My finding is that the first part of clause 14 must be understood in conjunction with the second part of that clause.
The purpose of the clause is to prevent tenants from obtaining a Kāinga Ora tenancy, allowing family or friends to live there, but not living there themselves.
That is not the case in this instance, and therefore I find that there is no proven breach of clauses 14 and 15 of the tenancy agreement.
There is also no basis for termination for abandonment. An abandonment occurs when a tenant leaves a tenancy with no intention to return. That can intention usually be inferred when a tenant leaves, takes their belongings, and cuts off contact with the landlord.
No such inference can be made in this instance. Mr Simpson is away from the tenancy involuntarily. It may be that he intends to return when he is able to.
Therefore the application for termination is dismissed.

Tenancy Tribunal case 4903714 — Rent arrears at 49 Second Avenue, Avenues, Whangarei 0110

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 4903714 — Rent arrears at 49 Second Avenue, Avenues, Whangarei 0110

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions