Tenancy Tribunal Orders Owners to Pay Levies and Costs

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[2025] NZTT Manukau 9058124

TENANCY TRIBUNAL AT Manukau

APPLICANT: [redacted]

RESPONDENTS: [redacted]

UNIT ADDRESS: [ADDRESS], [POSTCODE]

ORDER

[NAME] and [NAME] must immediately pay [NAME] $28,119.81, calculated as follows:

Descriptions Applicant

Ordinary Levies $4,804.92 Remedial Levies $17,200.03 [NAME]’s costs $540.50 [NAME]’s costs up to hearing $2,716.59 [NAME]’s costs for attendance at hearing $287.50 Interest on overdue levies to 19/2/25 $2,070.27 Filing Fee $500.00 Total award $28,119.81

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Reasons:

1. The hearing was conducted by telephone from Manukau District Court.

2. [NAME], counsel from [NAME], attended for the [NAME].

3. The [NAME] seeks orders for recovery of unpaid levies, interest, costs, and the filing fee from the unit owners.

Do the unit owners owe the levies claimed?

4. Unit owners must pay all [NAME] levies and outgoings payable for the unit.1

5. The [NAME] has determined the levies payable and unit owners’ share has been calculated according to their utility interest.

6. The [NAME] resolved that the levies be struck, fixed the due dates for the levies to be paid. Regrettably, this building was defectively in about 2020. The bulk of the outstanding levies in this case are for special levies to remediate construction defects. The unit owners did not anticipate having to suddenly pay such a lot of money. The financial cost is exacerbated by not being able to tenant the unit. Consequently, they have struggled to pay the levies.

7. The unit owners have not paid the levies by that date.2

8. The [NAME] has provided records to prove the amount claimed.

9. The Tribunal must order the unit owners to pay the outstanding levies. Hopefully, they can arrange payment terms through [NAME] to avoid further legal action and additional costs.

Are the unit owners liable for interest?

10. If unit owners fail to pay levies by the due date, interest accrues on the unpaid balance. A [NAME] may charge interest up to 10 percent per annum.3

11. The [NAME] has resolved to charge interest at 10 percent per annum on unpaid levies.

12. [NAME] has provided a table calculating the interest the unit owners owe on the outstanding levies from the due dates to the hearing date.

1 Unit Titles Act 2010 (UTA), ss 80(1)(f), and 121(1). 2 UTA, s 124(1). 3 UTA, s 128.

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Are the unit owners liable for costs?

13. The [NAME] may recover any reasonable costs it incurs to recover unpaid levies as a debt due by the owners to the [NAME].4

14. The [NAME]’s manager, [COMPANY] charged the [NAME] $540.50 for its work to attempt to recover the levies.

15. [NAME] has charged the [NAME] $2,716.59 for its attendances to demand payment and to bring the proceedings to recover the levies. It will charge a further $287.50 for [NAME]’s attendance today.5

16. The costs are proven.

Filing fee

17. The unit owners must reimburse the [NAME] for the filing fee.6

R Kee 19 February 2025

4 UTA, s 124. 5 In respect to legal costs, see [NAME] 162791 v [NAME] DC Auckland, CIV2014-004-0120, 24 June 2014, and [NAME] 162791 v Gilbert [2015] NZCA 185 6 UTA, s 176(1), and s 102(4) of the Residential Tenancies Act 1986.

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Please read carefully:

SHOULD YOU REQUIRE ANY HELP OR INFORMATION REGARDING THIS MATTER PLEASE CONTACT UNIT TITLE SERVICES [PHONE].

MEHEMA HE PĀTAI TĀU E PĀ ANA KI TENEI TAKE, PĀTAI ATU KI TE TARI UNIT TITLE SERVICES [PHONE].

AFAI E TE MANA’OMIA SE FESOASOANI E UIGA I LENEI MATAUPU FA’AMOLEMOLE IA FA’AFESO’OTAI’I LOA LE OFISA O LE UNIT TITLE SERVICES [PHONE].

Rehearings:

You may make an application to the Tenancy Tribunal for a rehearing. Such an application must be made within five working days of the order and must be lodged at the Court where the dispute was heard.

The only ground for a rehearing of an application is that a substantial wrong or miscarriage of justice has or may have occurred or is likely to occur. Being unhappy or dissatisfied with the decision is not a ground for a rehearing. (See ‘Right of Appeal’ below).

Right of Appeal:

If you are dissatisfied with the decision of the Tenancy Tribunal, you may appeal to the District Court. You only have 10 working days after the date of the decision to lodge a notice of appeal.

However, you may not appeal to the District Court:

1. Against an interim order made by the Tribunal. 2. Against an order, or the failure to make an order, for the payment of money where the

amount that would be in dispute on appeal is less than $1,000. 3. Against a work order, or the failure to make a work order, where the value of the work

that would be in dispute on appeal is less than $1,000.

There is a $200.00 filing fee payable at the time of filing the appeal.

Enforcement:

Where the Tribunal made an order that needs to be enforced then the party seeking enforcement should contact the Collections Office of the District Court on [PHONE] or go to www.justice.govt.nz/fines/civil-debt for forms and information.

Notice to a party ordered to pay money or vacate premises, etc:

Failure to comply with any order may result in substantial additional costs for enforcement. It may also involve being ordered to appear in the District Court for an examination of your means or seizure of your property.

http://www.justice.govt.nz/fines/civil-debt