What was the outcome of Tenancy Tribunal case 5274761?

The tribunal order states: The tenancy of Zephaniah Elisha Rose Te Huna at 7A Rangeview Road,

How much money was awarded in case 5274761?

Property Damage: $350.00 awarded to tenant; Property Damage: $500.00 awarded to tenant; Rent Arrears: $14,902.86 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5274761?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5274761?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/12311553-Tenancy_Tribunal_Order.pdf.

What was the outcome of Tenancy Tribunal case 5274761?

The tribunal order states: The tenancy of Zephaniah Elisha Rose Te Huna at 7A Rangeview Road,

How much money was awarded in case 5274761?

Property Damage: $350.00 awarded to tenant; Property Damage: $500.00 awarded to tenant; Rent Arrears: $14,902.86 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5274761?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5274761?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/12311553-Tenancy_Tribunal_Order.pdf.

7A Rangeview Road, Sunnyvale, Auckland 0612 Tenancy Tribunal Case 5274761 — Rent arrears

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5274761 — net $11,732.86 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Tenant	Reason
Rent arrears to 22 September 2025	$14,902.86		Rent arrears to 22 September 2025
Exemplary damages: No insulation statement		$500.00	No insulation statement
Exemplary damages: failure to maintain trees		$350.00	failure to maintain trees
Total award	$14,902.86	$850.00
Net award	$11,732.86
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$11,732.86

Order

The tenancy of Zephaniah Elisha Rose Te Huna at 7A Rangeview Road, Sunnyvale, Auckland 0612 is terminated, and possession is granted to Beta Property Investment Limited Queenie Wong, at 11.59 pm on Monday 22 September 2025.
Zephaniah Elisha Rose Te Huna must pay Beta Property Investment Limited Queenie Wong $11,732.86 immediately, calculated as shown in table below.
The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $2,320.00 to Beta Property Investment Limited Queenie Wong immediately.

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing.
This was a cross-application.
The landlord has applied for termination of the tenancy, rent arrears and refund of the bond.
The tenant claims the landlord has breached their obligations to maintain the property, and to comply with Healthy Homes Standards legislation. The landlord’s claims
Rent was at least 21 days in arrears on the date the application was filed. The tenancy is terminated. See section 55(1)(a) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
The landlord provided rent records which prove the amount owing at the end of the tenancy will be $14,902.86. The tenant does not dispute this amount.
The landlord and tenant agreed on the end date for the tenancy. Tenant’s claims Failure to maintain
At the hearing today, the tenant Zephaniah Elisha Rose Te Huna claimed that the landlord has breached their obligations under section 45 of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
Under section 45, a landlord must provide and maintain the premises in a reasonable state of repair, and comply with all requirements in respect of smoke alarms and insulation set out in the Residential Tenancies (Smoke Alarms and Insulation) Regulations 2016
Breaching any of these obligations is an unlawful act for which exemplary damages may be awarded up to a maximum of $7,200.00. See section 45(1A) and Schedule 1A Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
The tenant claimed the landlord: a. has not installed smoke alarms, b. has not maintained the premises by allowing a pest tree to grow right next to the house.
The landlord says she believes the premises do have compliant smoke alarms. However, because this claim was not part of the tenant’s original application, she has not brought information that supports her position.
The tenant has not provided any photographs or documentary evidence in support of her claim.
The onus is on an applicant to prove their claim to the standard of “on the balance of probabilities”. That means I must be more than 50% certain that what is claimed is correct.
I find I have no reason to doubt the honesty or the reliability of either of the two parties.
I accept the landlord has not had a reasonable opportunity to provide information in support of her position.
In the absence of more persuasive information from the tenant, I do not find this claim proved.
The tenant claims there is a tree growing right next to her bedroom window which exacerbates her asthma. In April 2025 she advised the landlord of this and asked the landlord to cut the tree back.
The tenant produced a photograph which shows a large tree commonly known as Woolly Nightshade growing against the house.
The landlord accepts the tree is a problem, that it can cause breathing problems, that it is a landlord’s responsibility to maintain trees on a property, and that she was advised by the tenant in April 2025 that the tree was a problem.
The tree, a Woolly Nightshade, is also known as Solanum Mauritianum. This plant is listed in the Department of Conservation’s “List of environmental weeds in New Zealand 2024” as an “unwanted organism”.
I find the landlord has committed an unlawful act by not removing this plant from the vicinity of the tenant’s bedroom window. Aswell as restricting light and airflow, this is a plant that is known for the unpleasant odour it gives off.
The landlord did not offer any explanation as to why she did not act on the tenant’s complaint.
I consider an award of $350.00 is appropriate in the circumstances. Failure to provide an insulation statement
Zephaniah Elisha Rose Te Huna claims the landlord has not included insulation details in the tenancy agreement.
A landlord must include a signed statement in the tenancy agreement that provides the following information: a. whether or not insulation is installed in any ceilings, walls and floors, and b. details of the location, type and condition of all insulation installed. See section 13A(1A) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
Breaching this obligation is an unlawful act for which the Tribunal may award exemplary damages up to a maximum of $750.00. See section 13(1F)(a) and Schedule 1A Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
The landlord stated that she had an insulation statement but she accepts she did not provide it to the tenant.
This claim is proved.
The tenant claims the property is damp and prone to mould and she suspects this is due to the lack of insulation. The tenant said she has seen parts of the landlord’s Healthy Homes Statement, and it appears to have not been fully completed.
Without an insulation statement or a Healthy Homes Statement from the landlord, it is difficult to assess the cause of the problems the tenant has raised. This is one reason landlord’s must provide this information. A tenant has the right to this information to assess whether problems at the house such as mould arise from landlord breaches or other reasons.
I find the landlord has committed an unlawful act and I consider a mid-range penalty appropriate in the circumstances.
The amount ordered is proved. Breach of Healthy Homes Standards, ventilation standard
Zephaniah Elisha Rose Te Huna claims that the landlord has breached the landlord’s obligations under section 45(1)(bb) of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (RTA), which requires compliance with the Residential Tenancies (Healthy Homes Standards) 2019 (HHS). Zephaniah Elisha Rose Te Huna considers that the landlord has failed to comply with the HHS ventilation standard.
The ventilation standard sets out minimum expectations around windows and doors, and in particular the area of doors and windows that are openable. The standard also requires that each kitchen and bathroom have extractor fans installed with a minimum defined extraction capacity.
Breaching this obligation is an unlawful act for which exemplary damages may be awarded up to a maximum of $7,200.00. See section 45(1A).
The tenant claims the landlord has not installed an extractor fan in the kitchen. The landlord said she has a Home Homes Report that show the property is compliant with the HHS. Unfortunately she has not provided this today.
The tenant has not provided any further information in support of her claim.
For me to find the claim proved, the standard that must be reached is on the balance of probabilities. That means I must be more than 50% certain that what is claimed is correct.
In this claim today, I find I have no reason to doubt the honesty or the reliability of either of the two parties.
It is unlikely that both parties are correct in their positions regarding the existence of an extractor fan and the compliance of the property with regard to the ventilation standard. However it is possible that for some reason they both have a valid point.
The onus is on the applicant to prove their claims. Without more information such as photographs, I can not find this claim proved.
Because both parties have succeeded to some extent with their claims, I let the filing fee costs lie where they fall.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5274761 — net $11,732.86 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Tenant	Reason
Rent arrears to 22 September 2025	$14,902.86		Rent arrears to 22 September 2025
Exemplary damages: No insulation statement		$500.00	No insulation statement
Exemplary damages: failure to maintain trees		$350.00	failure to maintain trees
Total award	$14,902.86	$850.00
Net award	$11,732.86
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$11,732.86

Order

The tenancy of Zephaniah Elisha Rose Te Huna at 7A Rangeview Road, Sunnyvale, Auckland 0612 is terminated, and possession is granted to Beta Property Investment Limited Queenie Wong, at 11.59 pm on Monday 22 September 2025.
Zephaniah Elisha Rose Te Huna must pay Beta Property Investment Limited Queenie Wong $11,732.86 immediately, calculated as shown in table below.
The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $2,320.00 to Beta Property Investment Limited Queenie Wong immediately.

Reasons

Both parties attended the hearing.
This was a cross-application.
The landlord has applied for termination of the tenancy, rent arrears and refund of the bond.
The tenant claims the landlord has breached their obligations to maintain the property, and to comply with Healthy Homes Standards legislation. The landlord’s claims
Rent was at least 21 days in arrears on the date the application was filed. The tenancy is terminated. See section 55(1)(a) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
The landlord provided rent records which prove the amount owing at the end of the tenancy will be $14,902.86. The tenant does not dispute this amount.
The landlord and tenant agreed on the end date for the tenancy. Tenant’s claims Failure to maintain
At the hearing today, the tenant Zephaniah Elisha Rose Te Huna claimed that the landlord has breached their obligations under section 45 of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
Under section 45, a landlord must provide and maintain the premises in a reasonable state of repair, and comply with all requirements in respect of smoke alarms and insulation set out in the Residential Tenancies (Smoke Alarms and Insulation) Regulations 2016
Breaching any of these obligations is an unlawful act for which exemplary damages may be awarded up to a maximum of $7,200.00. See section 45(1A) and Schedule 1A Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
The tenant claimed the landlord: a. has not installed smoke alarms, b. has not maintained the premises by allowing a pest tree to grow right next to the house.
The landlord says she believes the premises do have compliant smoke alarms. However, because this claim was not part of the tenant’s original application, she has not brought information that supports her position.
The tenant has not provided any photographs or documentary evidence in support of her claim.
The onus is on an applicant to prove their claim to the standard of “on the balance of probabilities”. That means I must be more than 50% certain that what is claimed is correct.
I find I have no reason to doubt the honesty or the reliability of either of the two parties.
I accept the landlord has not had a reasonable opportunity to provide information in support of her position.
In the absence of more persuasive information from the tenant, I do not find this claim proved.
The tenant claims there is a tree growing right next to her bedroom window which exacerbates her asthma. In April 2025 she advised the landlord of this and asked the landlord to cut the tree back.
The tenant produced a photograph which shows a large tree commonly known as Woolly Nightshade growing against the house.
The landlord accepts the tree is a problem, that it can cause breathing problems, that it is a landlord’s responsibility to maintain trees on a property, and that she was advised by the tenant in April 2025 that the tree was a problem.
The tree, a Woolly Nightshade, is also known as Solanum Mauritianum. This plant is listed in the Department of Conservation’s “List of environmental weeds in New Zealand 2024” as an “unwanted organism”.
I find the landlord has committed an unlawful act by not removing this plant from the vicinity of the tenant’s bedroom window. Aswell as restricting light and airflow, this is a plant that is known for the unpleasant odour it gives off.
The landlord did not offer any explanation as to why she did not act on the tenant’s complaint.
I consider an award of $350.00 is appropriate in the circumstances. Failure to provide an insulation statement
Zephaniah Elisha Rose Te Huna claims the landlord has not included insulation details in the tenancy agreement.
A landlord must include a signed statement in the tenancy agreement that provides the following information: a. whether or not insulation is installed in any ceilings, walls and floors, and b. details of the location, type and condition of all insulation installed. See section 13A(1A) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
Breaching this obligation is an unlawful act for which the Tribunal may award exemplary damages up to a maximum of $750.00. See section 13(1F)(a) and Schedule 1A Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
The landlord stated that she had an insulation statement but she accepts she did not provide it to the tenant.
This claim is proved.
The tenant claims the property is damp and prone to mould and she suspects this is due to the lack of insulation. The tenant said she has seen parts of the landlord’s Healthy Homes Statement, and it appears to have not been fully completed.
Without an insulation statement or a Healthy Homes Statement from the landlord, it is difficult to assess the cause of the problems the tenant has raised. This is one reason landlord’s must provide this information. A tenant has the right to this information to assess whether problems at the house such as mould arise from landlord breaches or other reasons.
I find the landlord has committed an unlawful act and I consider a mid-range penalty appropriate in the circumstances.
The amount ordered is proved. Breach of Healthy Homes Standards, ventilation standard
Zephaniah Elisha Rose Te Huna claims that the landlord has breached the landlord’s obligations under section 45(1)(bb) of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986 (RTA), which requires compliance with the Residential Tenancies (Healthy Homes Standards) 2019 (HHS). Zephaniah Elisha Rose Te Huna considers that the landlord has failed to comply with the HHS ventilation standard.
The ventilation standard sets out minimum expectations around windows and doors, and in particular the area of doors and windows that are openable. The standard also requires that each kitchen and bathroom have extractor fans installed with a minimum defined extraction capacity.
Breaching this obligation is an unlawful act for which exemplary damages may be awarded up to a maximum of $7,200.00. See section 45(1A).
The tenant claims the landlord has not installed an extractor fan in the kitchen. The landlord said she has a Home Homes Report that show the property is compliant with the HHS. Unfortunately she has not provided this today.
The tenant has not provided any further information in support of her claim.
For me to find the claim proved, the standard that must be reached is on the balance of probabilities. That means I must be more than 50% certain that what is claimed is correct.
In this claim today, I find I have no reason to doubt the honesty or the reliability of either of the two parties.
It is unlikely that both parties are correct in their positions regarding the existence of an extractor fan and the compliance of the property with regard to the ventilation standard. However it is possible that for some reason they both have a valid point.
The onus is on the applicant to prove their claims. Without more information such as photographs, I can not find this claim proved.
Because both parties have succeeded to some extent with their claims, I let the filing fee costs lie where they fall.

Tenancy Tribunal case 5274761 — Rent arrears at 7A Rangeview Road, Sunnyvale, Auckland 0612

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 5274761 — Rent arrears at 7A Rangeview Road, Sunnyvale, Auckland 0612

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Property management

Frequently asked questions

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Property management

Frequently asked questions