HNZ to guarantee Kiwibank home loans for multiple-owned Maori land

Wednesday 3rd February 2010

Housing New Zealand will act as guarantor for Kiwibank home mortgages on multiple-owned Maori land, overcoming a problem for Maori who have struggled to provide collateral when they build on ancestral land.

The state-owned bank and Housing NZ will offer a new home-ownership product called Kainga Whenua under which Kiwibank will lend up to 100% of the costs to build or relocate a house.

The product is capped at $200,000 and requires proof that the person has the right to occupy the land, a registered valuation and a satisfactory building contract, according to a statement from Housing Minister Phil Heatley. The offer is open to first-home buyers or those in a similar position.

To qualify, the borrower must earn less than $85,000, or a group of three borrowers in the same household must earn less than $120,000. Heatley said demand for the new loan product was likely to be modest though it alleviated years of frustration for Maori frustrated at their inability to get bank funding.

Borrowers are also required to have a good credit history and be intending to live in the house themselves. Houses must be single-storey, at least 70 square metres and be built on wooden piles.

Businesswire.co.nz

Comments from our readers

No comments yet