Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

Residential Tenancies Act 1986

Tenancy agreements - Termination of tenancies and recovery of possession

62B: Disposal of abandoned goods in accordance with Tribunal order

You could also call this:

“Rules for what happens to things left behind by tenants when they move out”

If you’re a tenant and you leave behind some belongings after moving out, your landlord can ask the Tenancy Tribunal for permission to get rid of these items. This includes any personal documents you might have left behind.

When the landlord asks for this permission, the Tribunal has to decide what to do. They can either tell the landlord to give the items back to you, or if that’s not possible, they can say the landlord can sell the items or get rid of them in another way.

The Tribunal might say that before the landlord can sell or get rid of your things, you should have a chance to come and collect them. They’ll give you a certain amount of time to do this. Or they might set another condition that needs to be met first.

If the Tribunal says the landlord can sell your things, they’ll also say how much money (if any) the landlord should get from the sale.

Remember, this is all about items that you’ve left behind, as mentioned in section 62(3). The Tribunal’s decision is meant to sort out what happens to these items in a fair way.

This text is automatically generated. It might be out of date or be missing some parts. Find out more about how we do this.

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM3280862.

Topics:

Housing and property > Renting

Crime and justice > Courts and legal help

62A: Disposal of abandoned goods following assessment of market value, or

“A landlord can sell or get rid of things left behind by a tenant after checking how much they're worth.”

62C: Application of proceeds of sale and recovery of amount owing, or

“How the money from selling a tenant's left-behind things is used and how the landlord can get back what they're owed”

Part 2 Tenancy agreements
Termination of tenancies and recovery of possession

62BDisposal of abandoned goods in accordance with Tribunal order

The landlord may apply to the Tribunal for an order for the disposal of the goods to which section 62(3) applies, including any personal documents belonging to the tenant.
On an application under subsection (1), the Tribunal must make an order—
for the return of the goods to the tenant; or
if that is not practicable, for the sale or other disposition of the goods.

Without limiting section 78(3), the Tribunal may, in making an order for the sale or other disposition of goods under this section, direct that the order is not to take effect unless the tenant has had the opportunity to collect the goods within a period specified in the order or unless another condition is met.
If the Tribunal makes an order for the sale of goods under this section, the order must state the amount owing (if any) to the landlord out of the proceeds of sale.

Notes

Section 62B: inserted, on 1 October 2010, by section 44 of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 95).