Source: New Zealand Government
More than 300 new social homes will be delivered in Bay of Plenty by Community Housing Providers (CHPs), Housing Minister Chris Bishop says.
“Our Government backs social housing, and we’re determined to deliver it better. That means building the right homes, in the right places, with the right support, for the people most in need,” Mr Bishop says.
“Across New Zealand, CHPs and Kāinga Ora have delivered over 6,800 net new social homes since November 2023, with 539 of those places being in Bay of Plenty.
“On top of that, the Government has committed funding for more than 2,000 additional homes to be delivered by CHPs over the next two years. Bay of Plenty is one of the regions benefiting from this pipeline.”
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has allocated social homes based on regional need, which has been assessed using a range of factors including the housing register and emergency housing use.
“In Bay of Plenty, the CHP projects are expected to deliver:
- At least 300+ new social homes to be delivered by CHPs including Accessible Properties Ltd and Emerge Aotearoa
- The new homes will be located in places such as Ngongotahā, Te Puke, Greerton, Lynmore and Papamoa
- Over 85 percent of places are one or two-bedrooms which will help address the greatest gap in social housing supply in Bay of Plenty
“Half of those waiting for a home nationally need a one-bedroom property, yet only 12 percent of Kāinga Ora’s stock meets that need. In the Bay of Plenty, 82 per cent of the Housing Register demand is for one- and two-bedroom places so these new homes will make a real difference,” Mr Bishop says.
“Every set of keys handed over is another person or family in a warm, dry social home. We’re focused not just on delivering more homes, but on delivering the right homes that match the needs of people and communities.
“The Government’s wider reset of the social housing system is already showing results. Recently the Community Housing Funding Agency achieved an A+ credit rating from S&P Global, and last week we announced the introduction of a new loan guarantee scheme, reducing borrowing costs for CHPs and enabling them to deliver more homes.
“We’re simplifying the funding system so providers can get on with building homes, instead of navigating a confusing web of overlapping funds. These Bay of Plenty projects are a good example of the progress being made.”
Delivery is well underway on the first tranche, which includes around 100 homes from CHPs including Accessible Properties Ltd and Emerge Aotearoa. We expect all of the 300+ homes to be delivered between now and 2027.
