Unit sales made under assisted ownership model
As part of the government’s Progressive Home Ownership (PHO) scheme, 25 households will purchase their first homes at the Toru apartments in Queenstown under the Queenstown Lakes Community Housing Trust’s (QLCHT) assisted ownership model, Secure Home.
QLCHT completed the project last month, three years after signing a contract for 50 of the 78 units in the Toru development at Remarkables Park, Frankton. The housing provider is set to take possession of its units later this month.
Last week, Housing Minister Hon Dr Megan Woods was on site to launch the 25 new PHO units supported with a $6.35 million interest-free loan from the government’s $400 million PHO fund.
QLCHT executive officer Julie Scott confirmed that average one-bed units have sold for $220,000, and two-bed unit prices average $320,000.
“Team these sale prices up with a deposit requirement of just 5%, for those who qualify for the government’s First Home Loan, and it makes these units the most affordable method of homeownership in Queenstown at the moment,” Scott said.
QLCHT deputy chair Joanne Conroy expressed gratitude to the government for its assistance and the Queenstown Lakes District Council for supporting the housing provider over the past 14 years, emphasising that it could not buy the 50 units without a strong balance sheet.
“Post COVID-19, this project would have been a major challenge without both the $6.35 million PHO funding and the operating supplement for 15 public housing units,” Conroy said.
Queenstown Lakes District Mayor Jim Boult commented: “Affordability has long been an issue for many looking to buy a home in our district, and it’s encouraging to see another significant step in making that dream a reality. It clearly demonstrates what can be achieved for our communities when the local and central government and hardworking organisations like the Queenstown Lakes Community Housing Trust come together.”
A further 15 units are going into public housing. Some are being sold on the open market, and the balance is being retained as affordable rentals or rent-to-buy units with the QLCHT.
