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Residential Tenancies Act 1986

Tenancy agreements - Termination of tenancies and recovery of possession

66: Reduction or termination of fixed-term tenancy

You could also call this:

“Rules for ending a fixed-term rental agreement early if there are big changes or problems”

You can ask the Tenancy Tribunal to shorten or end your fixed-term tenancy early if you’re facing serious problems. Here’s what you need to know:

If something unexpected happens in your life that makes it very hard for you to continue the tenancy, you can ask the Tribunal to make the tenancy shorter. The Tribunal will only do this if your hardship would be worse than the hardship your landlord would face if the tenancy was shortened. If the Tribunal agrees to shorten your tenancy, they might also tell you to pay your landlord some money to make up for any loss they might have.

You can also ask the Tribunal to end your tenancy if your landlord increases the rent by a lot. The rent increase needs to be big, something you couldn’t have expected when you first agreed to the tenancy, and it must cause you serious hardship.

If you live in an apartment or unit that’s part of a Unit Titles Act 2010 complex, you can ask the Tribunal to end your tenancy if the body corporate changes its rules in a way that affects you badly. The Tribunal can end your tenancy if they think it wouldn’t be fair to make you keep living there because of these changes.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM95542.

Topics:
Housing and property > Renting
Crime and justice > Courts and legal help
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“This part explains the special rules for people living in boarding houses, and which normal tenancy rules don't apply to them.”

Part 2 Tenancy agreements
Termination of tenancies and recovery of possession

66Reduction or termination of fixed-term tenancy

  1. On application by a party to a fixed-term tenancy, the Tribunal may make an order reducing the term of the tenancy by a period stated in the order, and making such variations in the terms of the tenancy as are necessary because of the reduction of the term, where it is satisfied that, because of an unforeseen change in the applicant's circumstances, the severe hardship which the applicant would suffer if the term of the tenancy were not reduced would be greater than the hardship which the other party to the tenancy would suffer if the term were reduced.

  2. Where the Tribunal makes an order under subsection (1), the Tribunal may order that the applicant pay to the other party an amount determined by the Tribunal by way of reasonable compensation for any loss or damage to the other party which would result from the reduction in the term of the tenancy.

  3. On an application by a tenant who is a party to a fixed-term tenancy, the Tribunal may make an order terminating the tenancy if the Tribunal is satisfied that the tenant has received a notice of a rent increase that—

  4. is substantial; and
    1. is of an amount that the tenant could not reasonably foresee when he or she entered into the tenancy agreement; and
      1. has caused, or will cause, serious hardship.

        1. On an application by a tenant who is party to a fixed-term tenancy of premises held in a stratum estate under the Unit Titles Act 2010, the Tribunal may make an order terminating the tenancy if satisfied that—

        2. the tenant is adversely affected by a change to the body corporate operational rules made under that Act; and
          1. because of that change, it would be unreasonable to require the tenant to continue with the tenancy.

            Compare
            • Residential Tenancies Act 1980 s 113 (Vic)
            Notes
            • Section 66: replaced, on , by section 27 of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 1996 (1996 No 7).
            • Section 66 heading: amended, on , by section 48(1) of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 95).
            • Section 66(2): amended, on , by section 48(2) of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 95).
            • Section 66(3): inserted, on , by section 48(3) of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 95).
            • Section 66(4): inserted, on , by section 48(3) of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 95).