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AFFORDABLE QUEENSTOWN RENTAL HOUSING

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April, 2023

All going well, 10 new affordable rental units will be built in
Queenstown by November, to be managed by Mana Thuna.
Its chief executive, Michael Rewi, says the charitable trusts been
doing a lot of mahi with the local Mori community, trying to
support people into home ownership.
Seeing a need for some different options in Queenstown, Mana
Thuna reps have been talking to various government ministries
about some ideas in Queenstown, but to be honest, most of
them involve us becoming a housing trust ourselves.
Thats some thing the trust has no desire to do, he says.
Instead, about a year ago, trustees started talking to
philanthropic people in our network about a pilot-type rental
and emergency housing development in the Whakatipu, while also
working to secure some government funding.
That was until one benefactor, whose names staying under wraps
for now, offered to fund the building of the one-bedroom units
themselves, and hand them on to Mana Thuna to run.
Rewi says consents been lodged with Queenstowns council
eight are planned as rentals, and two will be used as emergency
housing to
support whanau in need.
Theyre ready to go; builders are ready, plans are done, [were]
just waiting on consent to come back from council.
Once theyre built, Mana Thuna will step in as property
managers, taking care of maintenance, etc, and triage applicants
from the community at large.
While Rewi says its too soon to say what the weekly rental will
be, he confirms it will be affordable.
It wouldnt be in line with commercial market rates, itll just be
fair and reasonable.
Its really exciting.
While Mana Thuna has no interest in being property
developers, Rewi says if its successful theyll look to either
build more on the site, or speak to other philanthropic people who
might be willing to follow suit.

Source: Mountain Scene