You’ve been framed: KiwiBuild homes go up
THE frames have gone up on the first 18 KiwiBuild houses in south Auckland.
The three and four-bedroom homes are the first to be built under the Government’s KiwiBuild programme and sit on land formerly owned by the Defence Force between Takanini and Papakura.
Housing and Urban Development Minister Phil Twyford said he was ‘‘incredibly proud’’ building was under way.
‘‘This is a significant moment, for the first time we have the Government rolling up their sleeves and building high quality, modest, affordable starter homes for families, which is something that has not happened in this country for decades,’’ he said.
‘‘These first 18 homes will be ready for their families in August. A ballot, open to first homebuyers, to purchase these homes will be launched closer to that time.’’
The site is scoped for 30 KiwiBuild houses to be built by the end of 2018, with more planned to be added later.
The McLennan development – a partnership between Housing New Zealand and private developers – came about after private developers were unable to finance purchasing the land, Twyford said.
‘‘We seized the opportunity to build KiwiBuild homes, rather than just watch the grass grow.’’
The houses had an expected price of $579,000 for a threebedroom home and $649,000 for a four-bedroom home.
The KiwiBuild programme is planned to construct 100,000 affordable homes for first homebuyers over 10 years, with half of those in Auckland.