Disclaimer:
This article provides general information only and does not constitute financial, legal, tax, or investment advice. Property investment involves risk. Always do your own research and seek personalised advice from qualified professionals before making investment decisions.
Key Takeaways
- Document everything in writing; verbal agreements and conversations are hard to prove later.
- Match any notice, access request or Tribunal application to the specific issue and current legal process.
- Raise issues promptly and keep any agreement or required notice in writing.
- Keep communications factual and respect the tenant’s peace, comfort and privacy.
- Know when to seek help from Tenancy Services, mediation, or the Tribunal.
Tenancy issues can arise despite screening. The appropriate response depends on the facts, the tenancy agreement and the Residential Tenancies Act process that applies.
Difficult tenant situations come in many forms: persistent late payments, property damage, noise complaints from neighbours, unauthorised occupants, or simply a breakdown in communication. Each requires a different approach, but some principles apply universally.
The Golden Rule: Document Everything
Keep relevant, accurate records. If a matter reaches mediation or the Tenancy Tribunal, documents can help show what occurred, but they do not guarantee an outcome.
What to Document:
- ☐ All communication (emails, texts, letters) with dates
- ☐ Photos and videos of property condition with timestamps
- ☐ Records of rent payments and any arrears
- ☐ Copies of all notices served
- ☐ Notes from phone calls (date, time, summary of conversation)
- ☐ Inspection reports and maintenance records
Store records securely, retain only what is needed, and protect personal information from loss or unauthorised access.
Handling Rent Arrears
Overdue rent is a breach of the tenancy agreement and Act. Tenancy Services recommends checking whether the tenant knows about the missed payment and discussing how it will be brought up to date.
Step 1: Communicate Early
When a payment is missed, check the rent record and contact the tenant. Record any repayment agreement in writing; do not assume why the payment was missed.
Step 2: Formal Notice
A landlord may send a 14-day notice to remedy for rent arrears of less than 21 days; the 14 days are calendar days and service time must be allowed. The separate repeated-arrears process uses written overdue-rent notices after rent has remained unpaid for at least 5 working days on each qualifying occasion. Use the current Tenancy Services form that matches the process.
Step 3: Tribunal Application
If a 14-day notice is not remedied, a landlord can apply to the Tenancy Tribunal and ask for appropriate orders, which may include termination or money owed. A landlord may also apply when at least 21 days’ rent is owing without first giving a 14-day notice. Only the Tribunal decides the orders on the evidence.
Property Damage and Neglect
Tenants are responsible for keeping the property reasonably clean and tidy and for reporting any damage promptly. When they fail to do so, you need to address it carefully.
Distinguishing Damage Types:
- Fair wear and tear: Normal deterioration from everyday use (you cannot claim for this)
- Careless damage: Damage from lack of care, such as burns, stains, or broken fixtures
- Intentional damage: Deliberate destruction of the property
Record the condition and obtain evidence about what happened. Responsibility and remedies differ for careless, intentional and fair-wear-and-tear situations. A remediable breach may support a 14-day notice; termination or compensation requires the applicable legal test and, where needed, a Tribunal order.
Noise and Neighbour Complaints
Check the facts behind a complaint and the tenancy obligations that apply. Tenants must not interfere with the reasonable peace, comfort or privacy of neighbours, but a complaint alone does not prove a breach.
Start with a conversation or written request asking the tenant to address the behaviour. If problems continue, issue a formal notice to remedy. Document each complaint received and your response to it.
Repeated anti-social behaviour has a specific statutory notice and Tribunal process. Keep relevant incident information and any independent records, but do not promise that a complaint or record will establish the legal test or lead to termination.
Unauthorised Occupants and Subletting
First check the tenancy agreement and whether the person is a tenant, flatmate, guest, assignee or subtenant. Someone not named on the agreement is not automatically an unauthorised occupant or a proven breach.
If the facts show a remediable breach of an enforceable occupancy or subletting term, the landlord may use the current notice-to-remedy process. Consent, assignment, subletting, discrimination, occupancy and overcrowding questions are fact-specific; do not demand removal until the agreement and legal basis have been checked.
Communication Breakdown
Sometimes the issue is not a specific breach but simply a tenant who is uncommunicative, uncooperative, or hostile. This makes managing the property difficult even if no rules are technically broken.
Tips for Difficult Communications:
- ☐ Keep all communication written where possible
- ☐ Stay factual and unemotional in your language
- ☐ Do not engage in arguments or respond to provocation
- ☐ Set clear expectations and timelines
- ☐ Consider having a property manager handle communications
Tenancy Services mediation may be available after a Tribunal application. A mediator helps the parties discuss the issue and an agreed mediated order can be sealed by the Tribunal; settlement is not guaranteed.
When to Seek Termination
Termination routes have different tests. Examples include an unremedied breach after a valid notice, specified repeated rent-arrears or anti-social-behaviour notice processes, serious assault or substantial-damage grounds, and other statutory grounds. The notice count, time limits and evidence depend on the route, so use the current Tenancy Services guidance rather than a generic “three breaches” rule.
Where a Tribunal termination order is required, the Tribunal hears both sides and applies the relevant statutory test. Records may support the evidence, but no documentation guarantees termination.
Using Mediation and the Tribunal
Tenancy Services may schedule mediation after a Tribunal application. If the parties agree, the mediator records the terms and the Tribunal can seal them as an enforceable order; if they do not agree, the matter can proceed through the Tribunal process.
If mediation fails or is not appropriate, the Tenancy Tribunal can make binding decisions. Prepare thoroughly: organise your documentation, know the relevant law, and be ready to present your case clearly and calmly.
The Bottom Line
Avoid labelling a person as a “difficult tenant”. Identify the specific issue, check the agreement and current law, communicate factually, and use the matching resolution process.
Keep relevant records, respect privacy and quiet enjoyment, and use current Tenancy Services forms and service rules. Seek tenancy or legal advice where the correct ground or remedy is unclear; neither self-resolution, mediation nor a Tribunal application guarantees a particular result.