“I had given up on ever owning my own home in New Zealand,” said Emily.
Prior to moving into her new Habitat in Pukekohe, South Auckland Emily and her two girls had been living in rental accommodation without a working kitchen. Moving to a family friendly community where Emily’s girls can walk to school for the first time was something they were all looking forward to. Emily said, “Our old house was not a nice open area, I had always wanted an open area with a kitchen so I can keep an eye on the girls while I cook. It’s a really nice family environment now and we really appreciate what we have now.”
Emily is one of four families who recently started on their journey to home ownership through our Progressive Home Ownership programme. This is based on a Rent to Own model, where families pay an affordable rent, paying down the purchase price of the home over time until they can afford a commercial loan from the bank and purchase the home from Habitat. As part of Habitat’s hand up model, partners families also work towards home ownership through sweat equity.
Emily, who lost her husband three years ago, said, “This house is brand new and has the feeling of being ours, completely ours. This has given us new purpose and a goal to work towards. Home ownership means revolution for our family into generations to come. We are excited to have a bright future and new purpose in life.”
Emily who is also volunteering at the Pukekohe ReStore as part of her sweat equity hours said, “I know now that the girls are going to grow up having a bright future and a stable home.”
This opportunity was made possible by Nga Tai Ki Tamaki, as landowner and developer, and by support from Christian Savings Fund.
