Housing NZ decision angers family

Housing NZ told the <i>Bay of Plenty Times,</i> at the time, that its tenants were being evicted because of their abusive and threatening behaviour. Photo / File

A Tauranga family is angry at a Housing New Zealand decision to reconsider ending the tenancy of their "abusive" neighbours.

The father of the family, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, spoke with the Bay of Plenty Times in November about his neighbours, who live in a Housing NZ property.

The man alleged his neighbours verbally abused his family, threatened them and threw rubbish over their fence.

Housing NZ told the Bay of Plenty Times, at the time, that its tenants were being evicted because of their abusive and threatening behaviour.

This week, the complainant again contacted the paper to say the tenants had not been evicted and the behaviour had continued.

Housing NZ area manager Teresa Pou said, in a written statement, that following a significant change in the tenant's circumstances, Housing NZ reconsidered its decision to end the tenancy. "As a result we have decided for compassionate reasons to relocate them as soon as another property suitable for their needs becomes available.

"I am unable to discuss the management of their tenancy any further in the absence of a privacy waiver.

"We will be speaking with our tenant's neighbour very soon to update him about the situation and apologise for not doing so sooner."

The father of the family said he had put a trespass order against a member of the Housing NZ tenancy after one had come to his house and threatened him.

"We're not the ones in the wrong, we're just trying to live peacefully and we're getting treated like crap by Housing NZ and the tenants.

"More rubbish has been thrown over our fence, more abuse ... The guy threatened to smash my head in and that I'd better watch my back."

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