Months of waiting while rent arrears continue to mount has become an all-too-familiar frustration for property managers.
From 3 August to 30 October 2026, the Tribunal will trial a new Priority 2 scheduling category. It isn’t just good news for landlords pursuing rent arrears.
Tenants living in properties with serious health and safety hazards, such as dangerous mould, uninhabitable meth contamination, major water ingress or structural issues, could also see their cases heard sooner.
The pilot follows growing pressure on the Tribunal, with rent arrears now making up more than 60% of all applications. RNZ has also reported that some landlords have been waiting up to three months for a hearing, while the average wait for a first Tribunal hearing has increased to 48 days.
The faster process isn’t available to every application. To qualify, landlords must meet the requirements for a rent arrears application, participate reasonably in mediation, and keep the application focused on termination and possession. Including additional claims such as damages, water charges or other outgoings will generally see the application moved back into the standard scheduling queue.
For property managers, this reinforces an important litigation strategy: recover possession first, pursue additional claims later if necessary. Those who follow that approach are expected to benefit from earlier hearing dates and quicker decisions.
The pilot concludes at the end of October, with MBIE using the results to determine whether this faster pathway should become a permanent feature of the Tenancy Tribunal.
