Twenty-seven homes would be available on the Ōwhata site while 10 would be available in Te Puke’s Te Mania development, chosen for its fast-growing location.
The scheme aimed to help Māori on the property ladder, and both sites would also offer other affordable housing programmes.
Buyers will pay 75% of the house price with a mortgage and deposit through a bank and Ōwhata Kōhanga Rākau will contribute up to 25% of the home purchase price, which buyers pay back over time, interest-free.
The organisation would support whānau through their mortgage application process, and Ōwhata Kōhanga Rākau chair Jason Rogers said his team would be by their side “every step of the way”, enabling families to save and work towards owning the full value of the home within 15 years.
Rogers said civil work on the sites was under way and construction was expected to start in October and be completed within two years.
The group behind the Ōwhata Kōhanga Rākau project on the day the civil construction commenced.
“It’s quite phenomenal how big the impact will be on whānau struggling with the cost-of-living crisis,” Rogers said.
The 109sq m three-bedroom homes would be priced from $683,000 and 150 to 160sq m four-bedroom houses from $763,000.
Rogers said the interest free scheme would potentially save families up to $170,000 over the 15 years it would take to buy out the house.
Two-storey four-bedroom homes were targeted at whānau living with grandparents.
Rogers said homeowners would take part in home design, including picking “benchtops, curtains and the colour of the carpet”.
Ōwhata Kōhanga Rākau chairman Jason Rogers.
Applicants affiliated to the Ngāti Te Roro-o-te-rangi hapū and Te Arawa iwi would be prioritised.
The Te Mania development homes are on freehold titled land while the Ōwhata development would be a pre-paid lease, ensuring the land’s cultural heritage was safeguarded.
The lease was paid for by both whānau and Ōwhata Kōhanga Rākau and would last for just under 52 years, with rights of renewal. When families wanted to sell the home or the lease was up, the lease would be priced substantially lower than its initial cost.
The criteria for the scheme involved a household income cap of $150,000 and an application process to determine if the scheme was affordable for whānau.
The amount needed for a deposit would vary depending on what their bank would lend and the family’s income but Rogers said it would be much lower than the standard 20% deposit.
The development's civil works started in December.
“The lower deposit means they take the lower level of mortgage, and they end up having a lot more cash each month as a family,” Rogers said.
The land is owned by Ōwhata 2B and 7 Ahuwhenua Trusts, which historically used part of the land for forestry but switched to housing as a way of extracting Māori from “heartbreaking” conditions.
Rogers said it was good to celebrate “a positive news story” about Rotorua’s housing.
“We’re doing something about the housing crisis in Rotorua.”
The Te Puke homes would be an affordable option for whānau who could either commute 40 minutes to Rotorua or work closer by, Ōwhata Kōhanga Rākau general manager Alicia Adler said.
Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell said housing was the council's top priority. Photo / Laura Smith
Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell said the development was an example of “much needed” new, healthy and affordable housing solutions.
“We congratulate Ōwhata Kōhanga Rākau housing development and are grateful they’re delivering this locally led solution for our community.”
Housing remained a top priority for the council and Tapsell hoped to see more locally led and built community homes.
Rotorua MP Todd McClay, whose electorate includes Te Puke, said home ownership changed outcomes for families and led to a better life for young people.
“This is an important initiative where the Government can partner with the private sector, NGOs and iwi to build affordable and warm homes, rather than an over-reliance on Kāinga Ora or Government agencies.
Rotorua MP Todd McClay said the Government wanted to partner with the private sector. Photo / George Heard
The Government wanted to work more closely with these groups to deliver rental and first homes for Rotorua people, he said.
Western Bay of Plenty District Council Mayor James Denyer said affordable housing was the most important element of improving a community’s wellbeing.
He said a number of council initiatives were helping to enable housing, including developing the Te Puke Spatial Plan, Plan Change 96 – which aims to enable papakāinga development - and providing discounts to financial contributions to reduce development costs for papakāinga and Community Housing Providers.
Western Bay of Plenty District Council Mayor James Denyer. Photo / Alan Gibson
“All of this is supported by the refreshed Housing Action Plan 2024, which was published [last] month.”
The council’s Maketu/Te Puke ward councillor Grant Dally said the shared ownership model was a welcome addition to Te Puke’s housing landscape.
Harriet Laughton is a multimedia journalist based in the Bay of Plenty.
