Kainga Ora tenant struggles with neighbours
A Kainga Ora tenant says his complaints about abusive neighbours have not been actioned. The state housing agency has terminated fourteen tenancies in the last three months for bad behavior or rent arrears, compared to eight in all of 2023. Cheyne Smith, a Kainga Ora tenant since 2015, spoke to Ingrid Hipkiss.
Through a statement, Kainga Ora said it was aware of conflicts between Mr Smith and a neighbouring tenant, which has resulted in them both laying complaints against each other.
"Recently we have responded to one complaint from Mr Smith about a rubbish issue, speaking to the person involved. We’ve also had concerns raised with us about Mr Smith’s behaviour.
"Mr Smith has raised concerns with us in the past about other Kāinga Ora tenants, but after speaking to others living in the area at the time we were unable to verify his concerns. Our frontline teams have tried repeatedly to meet with Mr Smith, but he has been mostly unwilling to engage with us however our most recent engagement three weeks ago, was positive and no issues were raised.
"If Mr Smith has evidence to support his claims, we would encourage him to get in touch with us so that we can look into what has been happening and respond appropriately.
"We have strengthened our response to disruptive behaviour and our frontline teams are making earlier and more frequent use of the tools available under the Residential Tenancies Act. If we establish there is disruptive behaviour occurring, we will take action and make it clear that their behaviour is unacceptable, and their tenancy is at risk."
