Below are some frequently asked questions about the Pacific Building Affordable Homes Fund. If you have a question that isn't answered here, please contact [email protected].
The fund is open to Pacific organisations, private developers, iwi/Māori, and non-governmental organisations.
While priority will be given to developments on Pacific owned land and organisations working in partnership with Pacific communities, our focus is on funding projects that will deliver affordable, quality, and suitable family homes for purchase. These homes must be purchased for home ownership. We will also look favourably on non-Pacific organisations partnering with Pacific organisations.
To be eligible for this fund, applicants must show that:
The Pacific Building Affordable Homes Fund aims to increase Pacific home ownership rates by:
We will only fund a portion of the direct costs of building homes for eligible Pacific families to purchase for home ownership.
Funding will be limited to the minimum needed to support the viability of developments, capped at a maximum of 25% of project costs for the Pacific homes overall. This can include costs related to land, infrastructure, professional services, the house construction and/or project costs, where these can be directly attributed to building the agreed Pacific homes.
We will not fund any costs not directly related to building the agreed Pacific homes for purchase for home ownership. This includes community facilities. other amenities and rental properties. The homes cannot be purchased as investment properties to be rented.
We will also not fund houses built in the Pacific Islands or elsewhere outside New Zealand.
During the 2018 Lalanga Fou engagements run by MPP, many Pacific families spoke of their home ownership aspirations.
Home ownership is an important tool for reversing the socio-economic disadvantage many Pacific peoples experience. It provides for stability through security of tenure, the creation of wealth through capital gains on assets, and the potential for intergenerational wealth through the transfer of those assets.
In turn, security of tenure provides for, amongst other things, stronger connections with local communities, continuous access to amenities such as schools and health care, and a greater sense of belonging.
There are other Pacific Housing Initiatives aimed at building the capacity and capability of the Pacific housing sector, including the Community Housing Registration programme.
The Feasibility Initiative focuses on supporting the development of Pacific owned land for a range of tenure options. The focus of this Fund is to build affordable, quality, fit-for-purpose homes that meet the needs and aspirations of Pacific families.
Information on our Pacific Housing initiatives can be found on the page linked below:
All the homes must be in one region, although not necessarily in the same development.
No, this funding is only available for homes being built in New Zealand.
No, the funding is only to support the direct costs of the agreed Pacific homes. We will look favourably on developments that look to provide additional amenities, but will not provide any funding towards their costs through the Pacific Building Affordable Homes Fund.
At this stage there is no guarantee of future funding rounds. Should the number of strong applicants exceed what we can fund though the current contingency, we will create a long list of potential developments. If short-listed applicants do not proceed, we will draw on this list.
No, we will only fund homes that are purchased for home ownership in line with KiwiBuild eligibility criteria.
There is a two-step application process for funding.
Step 1) Submit a Registration of Interest (ROI)
To assist with this, you can download one of our Registration of Interest forms from the Government Electronic Tenders Website:
If your Registration of Interest is successful, you’ll be invited to move to Step 2:
Step 2) Submit a Request for Proposal (RFP)
If your application progresses to this stage, we will be in touch to tell you what’s required to submit your Request for Proposal.
Next steps
You'll need to get your ROI lodged by 12.00pm Wednesday, 19 October 2022. Any submissions that come in after this time will NOT be processed, so please make sure you get your applications in early.
This two-stage process is intended to prevent applicants expending too much time and resources on a proposal that may not be accepted. A light touch ROI allows a wide range of initial applications to be made and helps us gauge the market and inform any future Budget requests. It will also enable us to fast track any particularly strong applicants.
We will initially assess applications through the Registration of Interest process, based on the time needed (pace) to build the Pacific homes, the number of homes as a percentage of the development (scale), and the level of affordability of the homes. We will also consider the experience of the developer and the successful completion of other developments.
Applications that can demonstrate a commitment to some, or all, of the following will be preferred:
For the ROI process we only want to know how you intend to access eligible Pacific families. We will be seeking more detail during the RFP process.
You will need to be able to name the housing developer you will be using to build the homes and have a signed agreement with them to undertake the work. Evidence of their experience will be required.
You will find all the information you need in our Registration of Interests documents available at GETS - Government Electronic Tender Service | Current Tenders. [NEED DIRECT LINK TO MPP TENDER]
Please note the following:
You can submit your Registration electronically via GETs or via email to [email protected].
Registrations of Interest for the Pacific Building Affordable Homes Fund close at 12.00pm on Wednesday, 19 October 2022.
We are not looking for substantive responses during the Registration of Interest process. We only want sufficient detail to give us confidence your proposal, should you proceed, will meet our requirements. The assessment criteria will enable us to compare different Registrations of Interest and decide which should proceed.
Successful ROI applicants will be notified by 9 November, 2022.
Yes, you are. This is a brand new round of funding and provided you meet the criteria, you are eligible to apply.
Non-Pacific organisations are open to apply if their proposals meet our eligibility criteria. However, eligible developments on Pacific owned land and/or by Pacific organisations will be prioritised.
Partnerships with Pacific organisations will also be considered favourably.
Yes, in some circumstances this would be acceptable, provided the funding was not for the agreed Pacific homes for home ownership. Funding for affordable rental housing across the development would, for example, be acceptable.
At our discretion, we may select a limited number of proposals to be progressed early through the RFP stage, negotiation, and final funding decisions by Ministers. Proposals that were able to demonstrate an ability to act at pace and scale, while meeting most of our secondary criteria would be considered.
For the purposes of this fund, a home is a fixed, permanent dwelling that has all the necessary amenities for a family to live in comfortably. It should have sufficient bedrooms and amenities for the number of permanent residents. However, these could be across different buildings on the same site.
We would expect alignment with KiwiBuild caps for affordability noting there are exceptions for larger homes and multigenerational living. The KiwiBuild caps can be found here: Home price caps | KiwiBuild.
For multigenerational living and/or larger houses we will expect the applicant to show us how their design is affordable.
Pacific families often have more family members who need to live in the home. This means more people need to be accommodated both for sleeping and other amenities like bathrooms and living areas. Families living in the home can be multigenerational, so the general spaces need to accommodate various age requirements. Pacific people like to gather together in one space for social occasions. Pacific people may also have people come to stay for longer visits, so ensuring this can also be managed is a necessity.
Pacific people have a strong connection to nature, for example feeding and supporting their families by growing and cooking food outside can be important. They also typically want to live close to the areas they work in and remain close to their communities. Other design considerations can include, for example, the location of the bathrooms and the laundry.
There are a number of things to consider when meeting the needs and aspirations of Pacific families that require new approaches to both the design of homes and developments, as well as the construction methodologies used. This is particularly relevant in areas where medium to high density living is becoming the normal and where land is now at a premium.
For example, larger homes are not always affordable or practical. This means designs that provide for flexible and adaptable, multipurpose utility and living spaces are important. Also important are innovative ways to minimise building costs, while still providing the necessary space for larger families, multigenerational living, and extended visits from family.
We are using the criteria for eligibility for KiwiBuild, noting that different criteria may apply for multigenerational families. These can be found here: KiwiBuild-Eligibility-Criteria-July-2022.pdf
If you do not have your own contacts with Pacific families, you could consider discussions with local community groups, Pacific churches, or large employers in the area.
There are a number of organisations that provide financial capability programmes, including those funded by MPP through the Pacific Financial Capability programmes. The Pacific Financial Capability programmes provide support services to Pacific families to better manage their debt and save money towards homeownership. They are currently delivered in Auckland, Wellington, Horowhenua, Christchurch and Dunedin.