The New Way Forward For Housing In Christchurch

Kāinga Ora and the Christchurch City Council are together reimagining what life in the central city could look like for residents. Houses for sale in Christchurch are hard to come by, so these two parties are currently in talks to come up with unique housing solutions based on alternative housing.

Alternative housing refers to projects that do not come from the standard housing model that highly favours already-rich developers while leaving those who most need accommodation out in the cold. Alternative housing ideas include concepts such as rent-to-own, shared equity, co-housing, and community housing.

The Christchurch City Council has officially revealed that they are looking at how they can support alternative residential development projects in a bid to bring more diversity of housing into the city.

Kāinga Ora currently owns upwards of 6500 properties located in Christchurch. However, only around 100 of those are found in the central city. The city council is hoping to get more residents living in the centre of town, with their goal of 20,000 residents in the central city by 2028. This would require the current number of residents to more than double in that timeframe. This will only be possible with an increased array of accessible housing options available.

One local example of alternative housing is located in Peterborough Village. This co-operative housing concept contains 14 units in central Christchurch that open out onto a communal green space. Estimates say that these types of developments are more cost-effective for residents than traditional homes.

While people have been hesitant to return to living in the CBD following the earthquakes of 10 years ago, lower prices could be appealing enough to draw people back in. More housing projects like these will be required if the council is to meet its goal of bringing more residents back into the city.

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