Frequently Asked Questions

General

We are building 24 homes. 

A mix of 1, 2 and 4-bedroom terraced homes.

Each home will have an allocated parking space within the development. Parking has been designed in a way that maximises the space for housing.

The prices for the whare are:

  • 1-Bedroom - $395,000
  • 2-Bedroom - $650,000
  • 4-Bedroom (Two Level) - $900,000
  • 4-Bedroom (Three Level) - $940,000
  • 4-Bedroom (Two Level) whare and a 1-Bedroom whare - $1,295,000*

To buy a home, you must:

  • Be at least 18 years or older at the date of application.
  • Be a registered member of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei.
  • Commit to living in the home as their primary place of residence for the entire time they own the home.

The Whai Rawa Board will consider the best options if that is the case.

We are actively exploring housing options that meet the broad needs of our whānau. Hawaiki is offering homes for whānau to purchase on the papa kāinga, but we are also working through other plans and seeking funding partners so we are able to provide more affordable rental options for Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei whānau.  However, we have no committed plans or timeframes at this time.

We have previously shared images of an apartment building and have received resource consent but we haven't finalised plans. We do intend to build on this site but we don’t have any confirmed plans or timeframes. Construction may occur on this site after you’ve moved in. We will update everyone once the plan for this area is confirmed.

View map showing where the apartment building would be in relation to the 24 homes in Hawaiki.

We originally set this up as two separate titles. After feedback from whānau, we now have the option to purchase the 4+1-bedroom option on one title or two. This will allow you to consider what works best for you when you are discussing financing options with the bank.  

If you purchase as two titles, the two whare will be assessed by the banks separately but you will apply for the ballot under one application. If you wish to, you can sell either whare separately in the future. 

If you purchase as one title, the two whare will be assessed by the banks as one property. You will not be able to sell the whare separately in the future unless there is a subdivision into two titles. Any subdivision is a lengthy process and will require Auckland Council consent.  The cost of any subsequent subdivision would be at your expense.  It is difficult to predict this cost as the ability to subdivide will be subject to any changes to subdivision rules and the Building Code. Assuming there is no additional building work required, we anticipate costs of doing this today would be approximately $25,000.

Whether the purchase is on one title or two, the whare (both units) must be used as the principal place of residence of the owners and cannot be used as an investment property and rented out.

Design

The purchasers of the 2 and 4-bedroom homes can elect to include a toilet on the ground floor, at an additional cost.  It will be approximately $10,000. Please note, if a toilet is incorporated into the design, you will lose a storage cupboard on the ground floor. 

There is a 3m x 1m storage unit on each deck. We’re also looking into shared secure storage options and will update in due course.

Yes, this is part of the building contract.

In order to balance cost and sustainability, it was settled that design would be to a HomeStar 6 standard but with additional sustainability features such as water re-use and solar hot water.  We have also specified carbon-neutral concrete for the dwellings.

Yes, we will be overseeing that process with the help of an independent project manager.

Living in Hawaiki

You will be responsible for paying rates to Auckland Council as the leaseholder of the land which is set by them. To give you an idea, the current rates at Kāinga Tuatahi range from $2,689 to $4,288.

The rates for the common areas will be shared between all 24 homeowners. At Kāinga Tuatahi, each homeowner currently pays between $112 and $468 per year. These costs depend on the size of the property.

The land is general land.  Auckland Council has consulted on its Māori Land Rates Remission and Postponement Policy and whether it should apply to Māori housing development on general land. A decision on that has not yet been made.

If the policy were to be extended to this land, the amount of the discount would be in the order of 5% – 10% and would only apply to rates that are attributable to the land value and not the total rates bill.  As such, homeowners should not be counting on any material rates relief due to the nature of the land.

You will be charged an annual fee to cover things like insurance for the buildings, annual building wash, clearing storm water drains, lawn mowing, and checking the solar panels. At Kāinga Tuatahi, this cost is approx. $3,500 per year but is based on the size of the home i.e. a smaller home will pay a smaller amount than a larger home.

We will engage an independent consultant to put together a long-term maintenance plan so that costs can be spread out over time and Whai Rawa will charge a weekly fee to cover these anticipated costs. This could be around $1,248-$2,080 per year.

Yes, you can. Please note however that the green space is mostly communal so if you do intend to have pets you will need to consider the tamariki and whānau living in the kāinga.

We are preparing a chattels list and will upload to the website.

When purchasing a whare in Hawaiki, you will own the whare and the iwi will continue to own the land. Buyers will own a “leasehold interest” in the land–this means you will have the legal right to occupy the land in accordance with the terms of a lease registered against the title to the land.

The right to inspect is also part of the model for Kāinga Tuatahi, but has never been exercised - consent from homeowners has always been sought and we would expect that model of co-operation to apply to this development as well.  As to why the clause is needed, the Lessor arranges insurance for the homes and access may be needed for the insurer to provide quotes for cover.  There are also limitations in the Lease that control the changes that the Lessee is permitted to make to the interior of the property – access may be needed to ensure there are no issues in that regard.   Again, we would always seek consent in the first instance.

So long as at least one of the named lessees is occupying the whare as their principal residence, there are no restrictions on flatmates or sub-tenants.

The homes can be sold by you at market value - there is no cap on what that market value is, and you may sell the whare for up to 10% more than the market value set out in the valuation report to recognise that there is some variability in valuations.  

There are no projections on what the future values might be as there are too many uncertainties for this to be a useful exercise. We do not intend to produce any in the future.  The increase in price of most properties is largely due to the increase in value of the underlying land, rather than to the increase in value of the house itself. You can sell the house for whatever the market value is at the time you wish to sell, as described above.

Separately to owning the home, the homeowner only leases the land for $1 per annum and the lease is transferred to a new homeowner at the same time as you sell the whare. You cannot “sell” the lease for any financial gain. Because you have not had to pay for the underlying land nor pay market rent, you will have obtained a significant financial benefit over the time that you have lived in the house. Whai Rawa wishes to ensure that all future homeowners enjoy the same benefits as the original homeowners.

Finance

We’ve partnered with BNZ and Westpac so whānau are able to borrow from them to purchase one of our homes.

We have worked closely with BNZ and Westpac (Participating Banks) who understand the unique nature of our development, the legal documentation and our shared ownership programme. Additional Participating Banks may be added overtime.

If you default, Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei have an agreement with the Participating Banks that Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei will acquire the loan, instead of the bank exercising a mortgagee sale and selling the property on the open market. This does not affect your obligation to pay your mortgage and Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei can enforce the mortgagee’s rights on default.

No, the Participating Banks will step you through the process required to obtain a home loan and mortgage.

You will need to discuss this with the banks. It will depend on your individual circumstances.

You are welcome to shop around between the Participating Banks to find the best rates and/or offer that suits you.

All banks have slightly different lending criteria, but most will ask for the following:

  • Proof of income
  • Value of assets you own
  • The amount you can contribute to a deposit (e.g. savings, KiwiSaver, a koha from whānau)
  • Your current debt, liabilities and household expenses (e.g. credit card, hire purchase, etc.)

Settlement will take place AFTER construction is completed. You may need to periodically update your pre-approved amount with the bank you choose during the construction phase

You may be eligible to withdraw from your KiwiSaver and/or the KO First Home Grant. Have a chat to the banks to see what your options are.

The banks set the interest rates – we encourage you to talk to both mobile mortgage managers to discuss what is the best offer for you.

Click here for more info on the banks.

To give pre-approval, the banks are assessing your affordability on what you earn today as opposed to what you earn at settlement. Please note, however, that you will need to re-apply for pre-approval during construction.

The Mobile Mortgage Managers can talk to you about whether you are eligible for Kainga Ora First Home Grant. 

Click here for more info on the First Home Grant.

Yes, you absolutely can.

Changes to the home loan limits can be agreed between the parties from time to time.  This would involve the homeowner, Whai Rawa and Westpac.  The concern is to ensure that the ability to repay the mortgage and comply with the Shared Ownership Agreement is not compromised by other borrowings.  If the available income is sufficient to support additional loans, then we would be open to that conversation.

Whai Rawa takes its privacy obligations very seriously, and has policies and procedures in place to ensure that your personal information is protected as required under the Privacy Act.   Personal information is not openly available within the organisation, and anyone who has access to the information must take care to only access and share personal information for the purpose of doing their jobs and for the purpose for which it was collected. 

Legal Documentation

Pidgeon Judd, a law firm independent of Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei that is familiar with the Hawaiki Papa Kāinga development, is willing to act for you. 

You can make an appointment with them at the hui or contact Anna Humphries, email: [email protected] or phone: (09) 601 0100.

Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei will pay your legal fees up to $2,500 (which includes the legal costs of signing the documents now and settlement in Mid 2024) whether you decide to engage Pidgeon Judd or another firm.

It is the intention that all of this information will be available and provided at Completion Date, however there may be some minor delays in obtaining some documentation needed from third parties – we would not want that to hold up settlement.

As we can only transfer to a related entity, the ownership will be maintained under the Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei Group. Changes may be required for tax considerations, for example.  As such, we need to maintain the right to implement changes where necessary without needing to get approvals.

Shared Ownership

There is no interest applied to shared ownership portion that Whai Rawa contributes but it’s important to note that if Whai Rawa contributes $100,000 on a $1,000,000 property which is 10% of the value then that same percentage will apply when you go to buy Whai Rawa out. For example if the whare increases in value to $1,200,000 then you will need to pay $120,000 to buy Whai Rawa out.

When you talk with the bank, they will assess what you can afford. If you require Shared Ownership, they will ask you to sign consent for Whai Rawa to access your info to assess your eligibility for Shared Ownership. Once our independent financial advisor has assessed your info, they will confirm with you and the bank whether you are eligible and for how much.

The first anniversary of the end of the mortgage (or 30 years) is the deadline to buy out Whai Rawa. The legal agreement states that you will use your ‘best endeavours’ prior to that time.

You can pay off earlier and in instalments. The first anniversary of the end of the mortgage (or 30 years) is just the deadline to buy out Whai Rawa. The legal agreement will say that you will use your ‘best endeavours’ prior to that time.

There will be an annual process:

  • 31 March - Whai Rawa will write to the homeowner on shared ownership/buy back process.
  • By 1 June - Homeowner to notify Whai Rawa if it wishes to purchase its share (in whole or in part).
  • 30 June - A registered valuer determines the ‘market value’ for the whare (which will determine the price for the Whai Rawa share).  The ‘market value’ will take into account it is just the whare, not the land, and that the whare can only be sold to a Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei member (not on the open market).
  • 30 September - Deadline for homeowner to buyback (in whole or in part)

There will be a minimum amount that can be paid as an instalment – we have not set that amount yet.

It is up to you how you wish to share your ownership arrangements with the whanau that are named in the Shared Ownership Agreement, and each named owner will have all of the same obligations to Whai Rawa under the agreement.  The register will show the ownership shares between Whai Rawa on one hand, and your family on the other hand, and will not show how your share is split between you and your family.

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