They aren't his, and although they came as a surprise when he opened the shed doors they weren't really a surprise at all.

The tenant he and his wife let their Raukawa house out to so they could work on a high country station trashed their treasured home.

The woman tagged her name in the couple's fridge, on the bottom of their drawers and left them with a house full of rat faeces and a bank account short a couple of months' rent.

The woman, whom they had chosen from 48 applicants because she presented well and with the support of her mother and a reference, left them with a house full of rubbish, stuffed in cupboards and under the house, which they expected would take a week and a few hundred dollars to remove.

There was also the stress of having to establish whether the house had been used as a P lab, when a stain that looked like iodine was spotted.

"The insurance wouldn't have covered it and there's no way I would be able to let it out and have it on my conscience," Mr Fairweather said, knowing P contaminates a house.

The piles of rubbish were a heartbreaking discovery for the couple whose house had been their pride and joy before moving to work as a tractor driver and cook on the station.

They had redecorated, including putting new carpet in the bedrooms, when the woman moved in and had given her their 0800 number if she had any problems.

"We're having to think about moving back in, we just can't afford any more damage, but we love where we are living."

Despite efforts to find the woman, they still have no idea where she has gone.

To help other landlords avoid a similar situation, Mr Fairweather is advising people to check a new Ministry of Justice website.

At www.tenancytribunal.govt.nz landlords can enter a potential tenant's name and see if they have had an order made against them.

Mr Fairweather said he would be doing police checks and verifying references if he decides to get more tenants into the house.