Rental house had rodents, leaky roof

A landlord has been ordered to pay a tenant $1765 in compensation after renting out a property with rodents, a leaking asbestos roof and no insulation.

Tenant Khaula Kazmi was unable to fully use her lounge and kitchen at the home in Sandringham, Auckland, for about five months, a recently released Tenancy Tribunal decision said.

It detailed how a roof leak in August left ‘‘unsightly and mouldy’’ water damage on the lounge wall. Kazmi also suffered ‘‘considerable inconvenience’’ while the landlord, Crockers Body Corporate Management Ltd, arranged to have the roof replaced, which contained asbestos. But in the kitchen, holes and gaps in the lining meant rodents were getting into the cupboards and drawers. Kazmi told the Tenancy

Tribunal she did not feel the kitchen was healthy or safe to use. Unable to keep groceries in the kitchen from August until the end of her tenancy in December, she said she ate takeaway food.

The tribunal acknowledged Kazmi was paying rent for a kitchen ‘‘which could not be used in the usual way’’. The landlord had, however, ‘‘acted reasonably’’ in arranging bait stations and for a tradesman to block the holes.

It also found the landlord failed to install insulation at the house by the July 1 deadline required by law.

Kazmi asked to be compensated from July to October 2, claiming she had used more electricity than she should have while trying to heat the uninsulated home for 12 weeks.

The Tenancy Tribunal awarded Kazmi $1765 in compensation. Kazmi was ordered to pay the landlord $75 for cleaning, rent arrears and repairs.