15/06/2006

Habitat chooses family

Otorohanga District Council (ODC) has come to the party.
After much deliberation, Habitat for Humanity Waikato has been given the green light to start work in Otorohanga. ODC and Otorohanga Community Board has agreed to entirely gift the Merrins Ave land to the organisation.
Local couple Adam and Gina Herekiuha have been named as the lucky recipients of the town's first Habitat housing project.
They have five children: Paiama (12), Satrian (11), Paora (5), Rikau (4), and Shakara (1).
"Of the applications we received, the Herekiuha's really stood out," said Habitat for Humanity Waikato family support manager Shirley Bennett.
The two local authorities made a grant of equivalent value to the purchase price of the land to Habitat from the Otorohanga community property account.
While Iegal ownevship of the land is in the name of ODC the OCB has a notional interest of 50 per cent.
The Community  Board is therefore treated as selling 25 per cent of the land to Habitat, and receiving the full purchase price.
The notional shares of the remaining land following the subdivision and sale belong One third to OCB and two-thirds to ODC.
Otorohanga College currently leases part of section for carpentry classes.
The Herekiuha's home will be built on a 420m2 section.
Habitat will have title to the land after subdivision is completed by ODC, and sale and purchase agreement is completed.
The house will be rented for a trial period of three years. The family must pay its rent on time and take good care of the house.
After the three-year trial period, the rent paid to date is credited as equity in the property, and a sales agreement is entered into with an interest-free loan offered to the family by Habitat for a period ranging between five to 12 years.
At the end of that period the family will be expected to refinance the property with a bank loan, and Habitat gets its funds back to help another family.
Habitat for Humanity staff held two public meetings in Otorohanga last week, where they met with council and other community members.
They are still collecting prospective tenders, and calling for applicants for 2007 and 2008 housing projects.
"Calling for tenders is a new process for us, as we generally use the same contractors when working in and around Hamilton," said Mrs  Bennett. 
"We would like utilise local suppliers and sub-contractors as much as possible to make it a community project through and  through.
Habitat chief executive Pete North told council last week the organiastation has never received such a warm welcom to a community before coming to Otorohanga.
Habitat aims to have the floor of the Merrins Ave house laid in late August.
The house will be completed between September 4-15 utilising 15 local volunteers per day, and 150 volunteers in total.
Habitat for Humanity is a Christian organisatioin that works to eliminate sub-standard housing by bulilding and selling simple, decent homes on a not-for-profit basis.
Their motto is 'a hand up, riot a hand out'
Eligible families must have no more than $10,000 debt, be ineligible for a commercial horne loan, currently live in a house that does not adequately meet their needs, have permanent New Zealand residency, be willing to join budget advice and home maintenance training programmes, and not have owned a house before.
Another major criteria of the project is the family must be willing to work a minimum of 500 hours, of 'sweat equity'.
'Sweat equity' is the effort contributed by the family.
"This project is a great thing for this town." said mayor Dale Williams.
"It's about creating an alternative accommodation option for families who are already part of the community, and want to stay hare.
"I think the general public will be pleasantly surprised by the standard of housing that is constructed in Merrins Ave."
Habitat for Humanity is interested in carrying out similar projects in Kawhia.
Meet the Herekiuha family, in next week's Waitomo News.