Maharey visits first mortgage insurance scheme home owners

The opportunity to get a home loan when unable to save a deposit has been a dream come true for Feilding couple Brendan O’Hagan and Lisa Mandy.

Brendan and Lisa are among the first who have benefited to date from the government initiative with Kiwibank to make access to home ownership easier for low to modest income earners.

Today, Housing Minister Steve Maharey visited Brendan and Lisa in their new home and joined them in planting a tree fern in their garden.

“It’s just been a dream come true,” says Lisa. At the start of the year we never imagined we would be able to buy a home this year.

“When we started a family we decided that one of us would stay home to be there for the children. This meant we wouldn’t be able to earn enough money to save a deposit, so buying a house was put on hold.

“Then a couple of months ago our landlord told us he was selling and offered us the opportunity to buy. We didn’t think it was possible.

“We’ve lived here for 10 years. This house holds many memories for us. Joshua, now 3 was born in the lounge, and it’s been the only home Matthew,5 and Isaac, 9 have known.

“We couldn’t believe it. The day after our landlord offered us the opportunity to buy we heard about the government initiative with Kiwibank where in some circumstances you don’t need a deposit,” Lisa said.

Brendan says having their own home has provided balance in their lives.

“There’s certainly a lot to do. The gardens, building a fence and redecorating inside, just to name a few. But we’ve got the time.

“We’ve even discovered a tranquil part of the garden we didn’t know was part of property! It’s a bit overgrown at the moment, but there’s well established trees some paths and lots of birds, even rabbits and geese. The kids love it. It’s our little piece of wilderness.

. . / 2 “We also want to plant our own veggie garden. The kids will also have a section of the garden that is just for them. And they’ll have to do the weeding in their patch as well!,” Brendan said.

Steve Maharey said it was great to see the initiative with Kiwibank was making a difference and making access to home ownership easier.

“The number of people owning their own home has steadily declined over the past 10 years. But we want to be able to ensure home ownership remains within reach for low to modest income earners.

“The two-year pilot mortgage insurance partnership between Kiwibank and Housing New Zealand Corporation enables the bank to reduce the risk of lending to people with little or no deposit. Kiwibank is expected to approve about 1,800 loans as part of this trial, which may be extended and offered through a wider range of banks if successful.

“Our partnership with Kiwibank has proved extremely popular. Kiwibank has sent out over 9,000 loan application packs and has received 1,300 loan applications to date. To date 210 loans have been approved. Brendan and Lisa join 32 other families or individuals who have now bought their own homes using the scheme,” Steve Maharey said.

Kiwibank in Reach home loans: background Information

What is the Kiwibank in Reach initiative?

It’s a two year Government initiative with Kiwibank to make access to home ownership easier for low to modest income earners.

The main criteria for a Kiwibank in Reach home loan is: one or two people in the same household have a combined income of up to or including $50,000; or three or more people in the same household have a combined income of up to and including $100,000; and all applicants have a good credit history and can meet repayments and other conditions.

Who can apply?

Anyone can apply, although Kiwibank in Reach home loans may only be approved in situations where: you will be the owner/occupier; and you don't own another house; and you meet the credit criteria and other conditions; and can afford the repayments.

What’s the response so far?

More than 12,000 copies of the pre-purchase booklet Thought owning a home was out of reach? Think again have been distributed. About 9,000 loan application packs have been sent out. 1,300 loan applications have been received. Of these about 210 have been approved and 32 applicants have settled and moved into their first home. The average loan value is $110,000.

About 660 applications have been declined and 420 are being processed. The reasons for decline are mainly due to poor credit history and affordability issues.

The locations for the 32 settled loans are: Blenheim, Owhango, Raumati South, Feilding, Palmerston North, Takapuna, Tamatea, New Plymouth, Christchurch, Dunedin, Wainuiomata, Rotorua, Stokes Valley, Wanganui, Invercargill, Hamilton, Rongotea, Seddon, Hastings, Patea, Kihikihi, Lower Hutt, Trentham, Pahiatua, Woodville, Levin and Mata.

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