What was the outcome of Tenancy Tribunal case 5281442?

The tribunal order states: Chanel Chin must pay Kenneth Walter Aitcheson and Shelley Aitcheson

How much money was awarded in case 5281442?

Filing Fee: $27.00 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $5,211.43 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5281442?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5281442?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/12098606-Tenancy_Tribunal_Order.pdf.

What was the outcome of Tenancy Tribunal case 5281442?

The tribunal order states: Chanel Chin must pay Kenneth Walter Aitcheson and Shelley Aitcheson

How much money was awarded in case 5281442?

Filing Fee: $27.00 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $5,211.43 awarded to landlord

What type of tenancy dispute was case 5281442?

The primary dispute was Rent arrears.

Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5281442?

The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/12098606-Tenancy_Tribunal_Order.pdf.

24 Cranston Street, Andersons Bay, Dunedin 9013 Tenancy Tribunal Case 5281442 — Rent arrears

Reasons

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5281442 — net $2,198.43 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears to 9 July 2025	$5,211.43	Rent arrears to 9 July 2025
Filing fee reimbursement	$27.00	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$2,198.43
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$2,198.43

The landlord attended the hearing by phone call.

The tenant was telephoned on the phone number provided but the phone call went unanswered.

I am satisfied the tenant was properly served with notice of the hearing.

The hearing proceeded in her absence.

The landlord has applied for: a. termination of the tenancy, b. rent arrears, c. payment of the bond, d. reimbursement of the filing fee. Termination

The tenancy was a fixed term tenancy commencing on 20 September 2024 and with a contractual end date of 19 September 2025

The landlord withdrew the application for termination at the hearing as the tenant advised the landlord on 9 July 2025 that she had vacated the premises.

However, I record rent was not at least 21 days in arrears on the date the application was filed. 1

Had the landlord not withdrawn the application for termination it would have been dismissed in any event. Rent arrears

The landlord sought rent arrears to the end of the fixed term.

The landlord provided rent records which prove the amount owing to the end of the fixed term. I allowed the landlord to file his rent summary following the hearing and the landlord provided a rent summary and increased the amount claimed from $9,880 to $12,920 to the end of the fixed term.

I have made an order for rent arrears to 9 July 2025 and dismiss the balance of the claim for the following reasons. 1 See section 55(1)(a) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.

The tenant may have anticipated a termination order to be made at today’s hearing, in which case her liability for rent would have ended. For the reasons outlined above a termination order has not been made.

Another way a tenancy can end is where a tenant surrenders the tenancy with the landlord’s written consent. 2

It is reasonable to infer that the tenant vacated the tenancy in response to the landlord’s application to the Tribunal to terminate the tenancy. In addition, the parties exchanged the following text messages: Landlord – It’s come to our attention that you appear to have moved out of (address).

Can you please confirm if this is the case and when this occurred?

Tenant - ...I haven’t moved out yet. There are still things there. An email was going to be sent to you today. As I can no longer afford to pay the rent, I have started to move. Landlord – I will await your email Can you please advise when you are fully out and when we can recover the keys and garage door opener etc. Landlord - ... Can you please advise a forwarding address for your new home. When will you be out of the house? We need to re-tenant it... Tenant – I plan to be out by at least Monday. There are still some things in the house and I have some cleaning to do

The tenant vacated on 9 July 2025.

I find that the tenant surrendered the tenancy, and the landlord has accepted the surrender of the tenancy by way of his application for termination to the Tribunal and the text message exchange above. Accordingly, the tenant’s rent liability ended on 9 July 2025.

If I am wrong in my finding above, I record that the Tribunal cannot award rent beyond the hearing date in any event. Bond 2 See section 50 (1)(d) RTA.

The application form referred to a claim for the bond.

The bond of $3,040 is held by the landlord.

I have included the bond as a deduction in the table above as the bond is to off-set the rent arrears. Filing fee

Because the landlord has partly succeeded with the claim, I have reimbursed the filing fee. Suppression

The landlord confirmed that name suppression was not sought.

Claims and awards in Tenancy Tribunal application 5281442 — net $2,198.43 NZD. Amounts reconciled from the published order (claims sum and net total). Verify on MoJ.
Claim	Landlord	Reason
Rent arrears to 9 July 2025	$5,211.43	Rent arrears to 9 July 2025
Filing fee reimbursement	$27.00	Filing fee reimbursement
Net award	$2,198.43
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord	$2,198.43

Order

Chanel Chin must pay Kenneth Walter Aitcheson and Shelley Aitcheson $2,198.43 immediately, calculated as shown in the table below:
The balance of the claim is dismissed.

Reasons

The landlord attended the hearing by phone call.
The tenant was telephoned on the phone number provided but the phone call went unanswered.
I am satisfied the tenant was properly served with notice of the hearing.
The hearing proceeded in her absence.
The landlord has applied for: a. termination of the tenancy, b. rent arrears, c. payment of the bond, d. reimbursement of the filing fee. Termination
The tenancy was a fixed term tenancy commencing on 20 September 2024 and with a contractual end date of 19 September 2025
The landlord withdrew the application for termination at the hearing as the tenant advised the landlord on 9 July 2025 that she had vacated the premises.
However, I record rent was not at least 21 days in arrears on the date the application was filed. 1
Had the landlord not withdrawn the application for termination it would have been dismissed in any event. Rent arrears
The landlord sought rent arrears to the end of the fixed term.
The landlord provided rent records which prove the amount owing to the end of the fixed term. I allowed the landlord to file his rent summary following the hearing and the landlord provided a rent summary and increased the amount claimed from $9,880 to $12,920 to the end of the fixed term.
I have made an order for rent arrears to 9 July 2025 and dismiss the balance of the claim for the following reasons. 1 See section 55(1)(a) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
The tenant may have anticipated a termination order to be made at today’s hearing, in which case her liability for rent would have ended. For the reasons outlined above a termination order has not been made.
Another way a tenancy can end is where a tenant surrenders the tenancy with the landlord’s written consent. 2
It is reasonable to infer that the tenant vacated the tenancy in response to the landlord’s application to the Tribunal to terminate the tenancy. In addition, the parties exchanged the following text messages: Landlord – It’s come to our attention that you appear to have moved out of (address).

Can you please confirm if this is the case and when this occurred?

The tenant vacated on 9 July 2025.
I find that the tenant surrendered the tenancy, and the landlord has accepted the surrender of the tenancy by way of his application for termination to the Tribunal and the text message exchange above. Accordingly, the tenant’s rent liability ended on 9 July 2025.
If I am wrong in my finding above, I record that the Tribunal cannot award rent beyond the hearing date in any event. Bond 2 See section 50 (1)(d) RTA.
The application form referred to a claim for the bond.
The bond of $3,040 is held by the landlord.
I have included the bond as a deduction in the table above as the bond is to off-set the rent arrears. Filing fee
Because the landlord has partly succeeded with the claim, I have reimbursed the filing fee. Suppression
The landlord confirmed that name suppression was not sought.

Tenancy Tribunal case 5281442 — Rent arrears at 24 Cranston Street, Andersons Bay, Dunedin 9013

At a glance

Tenancy Tribunal case 5281442 — Rent arrears at 24 Cranston Street, Andersons Bay, Dunedin 9013

At a glance

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Can you please confirm if this is the case and when this occurred?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions

Award balance

Claims & awards

Order

Reasons

Can you please confirm if this is the case and when this occurred?

Topics & place

Residential Tenancies Act sections

Key findings

Frequently asked questions