oct 1, 2013 - FirstHome Scheme - starts

Description:

A new initiative administered by Housing New Zealand Corporation was announced to help families buy their first home. FirstHome was designed to help modest income earners in provincial New Zealand buy their first home by gifting them a 10 percent deposit and giving them priority to purchase surplus vacant state houses no longer needed by Housing New Zealand.
Applicants needed to be first-home buyers and have an income equal to or less than the national household average (one person $53,000, two or more persons $80,600) and be committed to owning and living in the house for a minimum of three years.
Housing New Zealand would make a grant of 10 percent of the property’s market value (up to $20,000). Buyers may also be eligible for other home ownership assistance, such as the KiwiSaver first-home deposit subsidy and savings withdrawal, and a Welcome Home Loan.
From 7 October 2013, 41 properties were available for sale, from Otorohanga in the north, to Invercargill in the south. Up to 400, properties in provincial New Zealand were expected to be offered for sale over the following three years.

Source: https://www.msd.govt.nz/about-msd-and-our-work/about-msd/history/social-assistance-chronology-programme-history.html

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