A NSW landlord was ordered to pay their tenant more than $2000 after a tribunal found they failed to keep the rental property in “reasonable repair”.
The tenant, who occupied the Weston property in the state’s Hunter region, made an application to the Civil and Administrative Tribunal for orders to have the rent on the property reduced and to have the landlord carry out repairs.
The tenant also made a $7500 claim for compensation.
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The tenant was living in the property at the time of the application but moved out about two months later, before a tribunal decision was handed down.
The tribunal found the landlord breached their obligations over several issues, including the presence of ants in the kitchen at the start of the tenancy, a faulty hot water system, an unusable dishwasher and a broken gate.
The tenant paid $360 for pest control for the ants in the kitchen, which the tribunal then ordered they be compensated for.
In regard to the faulty hot water system, the tribunal found it was not in “reasonable repair” before it was replaced and the tenant “suffered loss and damage, in the nature of excessive water and gas bills”.
Over that issue, the landlord was ordered to pay $360 to the tenant.
The landlord was ordered to pay the tenant another $680 after the tribunal found the dishwasher in the property was not working for more than nine months during the tenancy.
“The Tribunal finds that, as a result of the landlord’s failure to repair or replace the dishwasher, the tenant suffered inconvenience, loss and damage,” the decision said.
The tribunal found although the landlord obtained a quote to have the broken gate replaced, which blew off during severe weather, it was not.
The landlord was ordered to pay another $700 to the tenant over the gate for “inconvenience, loss and damage, and a significant reduction of security and privacy”.
All up, the landlord was ordered to pay the tenant $2100.
The remainder of the tenant’s claims were dismissed.
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