Tenantcheck Insights · Case study
Tenancy Tribunal case 5421410 — Rent arrears at 29 Wilson Street, Waverley 4510
Published 7 May 2026 · Application 5421410
Landlord favoured
- Rent arrears
- Cleanliness
- Property damage
At a glance
Key facts from the published tribunal order.
Outcome
Landlord favoured
From published order
Location
Waverley
Tribunal region
Adjudicator
T Prowse
Dispute themes
Award balance
Gross awards, any bond applied per the order, and the remaining balance payable.
- Gross award
- $2,383.12
- Bond payment as ordered
- −$1,700.00
- Total balance for Tenant to pay Landlord
- $683.12
Claims & awards
What this tenancy cost at tribunal — claim, category, amount, and party awarded, with reconciled net total.
| Claim | Landlord | Tenant | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent arrears to 26 November 2025 | $1,275.00 | Rent arrears to 26 November 2025 | |
| Carpet Cleaning: including stain removal | $450.00 | Carpet Cleaning: including stain removal | |
| Cleaning | $230.12 | Cleaning | |
| Repairs: Wall damage | $200.00 | Repairs: Wall damage | |
| Window repairs | $200.00 | Window repairs | |
| Filing fee reimbursement | $28.00 | Filing fee reimbursement | |
| Net award | $683.12 | ||
| Total payable by Tenant to Landlord | $683.12 |
Claims and awards for application 5421410 — net $683.12 NZD. Verify on MoJ.
Rent arrears to 26 November 2025
- Amount
- $1,275.00
- Awarded to
- Landlord
- Reason
- Rent arrears to 26 November 2025
Carpet Cleaning: including stain removal
- Amount
- $450.00
- Awarded to
- Landlord
- Reason
- Carpet Cleaning: including stain removal
Cleaning
- Amount
- $230.12
- Awarded to
- Landlord
- Reason
- Cleaning
Repairs: Wall damage
- Amount
- $200.00
- Awarded to
- Landlord
- Reason
- Repairs: Wall damage
Window repairs
- Amount
- $200.00
- Awarded to
- Landlord
- Reason
- Window repairs
Filing fee reimbursement
- Amount
- $28.00
- Awarded to
- Landlord
- Reason
- Filing fee reimbursement
Net award
Landlord $683.12
Total payable by Tenant to Landlord
Landlord $683.12
Claim types — money lines allowed on this order
Order
- Johnny Waitokia must pay Hawera Property Management Limited As Agent For Raffaella & Matteo Mannoni $683.12 immediately, calculated as shown in table below.
- The Bond Centre is to pay the bond of $1,700.00 to Hawera Property Management Limited As Agent For Raffaella & Matteo Mannoni immediately.
Reasons
- Ms Gay the property manager for the landlord attended the hearing. The tenant did not attend. The tenant was rung twice on his telephone number in the application, but neither call was answered. I am satisfied that the tenant has been given notice of today’s hearing and have proceeded in his absence.
- The tenant was already living at the property in August 2023 when the landlord purchased the property, and the property manager began managing the property. It is unclear for how long prior to the landlord purchasing the property that the tenant lived there. During the hearing Ms Gay contacted the real estate agency that sold the property and was told that the tenant was in place at least as early as January 2022.
- The tenant sent an email to Ms Gay on the 5 November 2025 saying that he was leaving the property the following week to relocate elsewhere in New Zealand. Ms Gay advised him that he needed to give 21 days’ notice. On the 7 November the tenant handed in the keys to the property manager.
- The landlord decided to sell the property soon after the tenancy ended.
- The landlord is claiming: a. Rent from 5 November to 26 November (which is the required notice period) $1275.00 b. Cleaning costs of $230.00. c. Costs of repairing damage to the property as per an invoice from a maintenance person of $7153.00 d. The filing fee.
Is the tenant liable for rent?
- In periodic tenancy tenants are required to give 21 days’ notice to end a tenancy. Tenants remain liable for rent during this notice period, unless the landlord has given written consent to the tenant to surrender the tenancy early, or the landlord finds another tenant, or sells the property during this period.
- As the landlord never agreed in writing with the tenant that he could surrender the tenant earlier, nor was the property relet or sold, then the tenant remains liable for rent until the end of the notice period.
- The landlord provided a copy of the rent ledger that proves the tenant owes this amount.
Did the tenant comply with their obligations at the end of the tenancy?
- At the end of the tenancy the tenant must leave the premises reasonably clean and tidy, remove all rubbish, return all keys and security devices, and leave all chattels provided for their benefit. See section 40(1)(e)(ii)-(v) Residential Tenancies Act 1986.
- A landlord must prove that damage to the premises occurred during the tenancy and is more than fair wear and tear. If this is established, to avoid liability, the tenant must prove they did not carelessly or intentionally cause or permit the damage. Tenants are liable for the actions of people at the premises with their permission. See sections 40(2)(a), 41 and 49B RTA.
- The landlord provided an inspection report of the property at the end of the tenancy (the report was completed on the 18 November). It shows that some effort has been made to clean the property by the tenant but there are still areas of the property that are not reasonably clean and tidy, including the flooring throughout the house, and the bathroom and rangehood. I consider that the amount claimed by the landlord for cleaning is reasonable for the work that needed to be completed, and I award that amount.
- The landlord submitted an invoice from South Taranaki Home Renovations dated 27 December 2025 for all the work done at the property by that company this includes, plastering, painting, repair of holes and nail/ hook damage on the walls, carpet cleaning, glass repairs, installing a toilet cistern, repairing lights and mowing lawns. It appears from the date of the invoice, which was shortly before the property was sold, that this work was completed not necessarily to remedy any damage caused by the tenant, but to get the house ready for sale.
- The invoice details the exact work done but does not state exactly what the cost of each work was rather it costs the work on a room-by-room basis.
- The landlord provided me with the inspection report that it did when the landlord first purchased the house in August 2023 and the tenant was living in the property. It is not easy to compare the condition of the property from August 2023 to the end of the tenancy as some of the photographs are for different areas or are covered by furniture or the photographs are of a poor quality.
- Ms Gay submitted that the property was newly renovated before the tenancy began, but the difficulty is that we do not know how long ago that was; as we do not know how long the tenant lived at the address before this owner brought it.
- I am satisfied from the inspection report that the tenant put a hole in the door of bedroom 1 and that it appears that the tenant attempted to plaster over some holes in bedroom 1. I am also satisfied that the tenants stained the carpet in all areas where there was carpet, which would have required carpet cleaning to try and remove the stains. I am also satisfied that there were broken windows in the bathroom.
- I am not satisfied that the tenant is responsible for the painting of the property, I say this because I do not know how long the tenant was in place and when the property was last painted. The walls are in need of a paint, but this may be as a result of fair wear and tear, so I award no amount for painting, beyond the amounts I have awarded for the door and wall repairs.
- The Tribunal sees invoices for carpet cleaning and stain removal daily, and I award $450.00 for carpet cleaning and stain removal, which I consider reasonable for the condition of the carpets.
- I would have awarded some costs towards lawnmowing, but the trade persons invoice shows that the landlord was not charged for this work.
- I have awarded $200 for the glass repairs in the bathroom, deducted a small amount off the amount charged for the bathroom as that included the installation of the toilet cistern, which the tenant did not damage.
- The amounts ordered are proved.
- I have taken into account betterment and depreciation. The landlord should be returned to the position they would have been in had the tenant not breached their obligations and should not be better or worse off. In calculating depreciation, I have taken into account the age and condition of the items at the start of the tenancy and their likely useful lifespan. The filing fee.
- Because Hawera Property Management Limited As Agent For Raffaella & Matteo Mannoni has substantially succeeded with the claim I have reimbursed the filing fee.
Topics & place
Topics are dispute themes across the order (not the same as claim-type money lines).
Residential Tenancies Act sections
s40(1), s40(2)
Key findings
- Dispute theme: rent arrears
- Dispute theme: cleaning
- Dispute theme: property damage
Property management
Frequently asked questions
Common questions about this Tenancy Tribunal case.
What was the outcome of Tenancy Tribunal case 5421410?
The tribunal order states: Johnny Waitokia must pay Hawera Property Management Limited As Agent For
How much money was awarded in case 5421410?
Cleaning: $450.00 awarded to landlord; Cleaning: $230.12 awarded to landlord; Filing Fee: $28.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $200.00 awarded to landlord; Rent Arrears: $1,275.00 awarded to landlord; Property Damage: $200.00 awarded to landlord
What type of tenancy dispute was case 5421410?
The primary dispute was Rent arrears. Related themes: Cleanliness, Property damage.
Where can I read the official tribunal order for case 5421410?
The official Ministry of Justice published order is available at https://forms.justice.govt.nz/search/Documents/TTV2/PDF/13559202-Tenancy_Tribunal_Order.pdf.