Auckland's first KiwiBuild homes completed, ready for families

Sunday, 2 September 2018

The doors open on KiwiBuild's first homes to be completed.

The first set of KiwiBuild homes in Auckland are ready and homeowners will be in by Christmas, Housing Minister Phil Twyford said.

Eighteen KiwiBuild homes have been completed in Liberation Road in the south Auckland suburb of Papakura at the McLennan development.

There are 12 three-bedroom homes priced at $579,000 and six four-bedroom homes priced at $649,000.

Minister of Housing and Urban Development Phil Twyford unveils the first set of KiwiBuild homes in south Auckland.

Every house will be will be sold through a ballot which opens on September 10. That process will run for four weeks.

'This is a desirable and fast growing community surrounded by shops and schools. This is exactly the kind of community that young Kiwi families who want a crack at homeownership will be thrilled to be able to live in,' Twyford said.

Anna Laurent and Jos Laurent have been living in the area for over two years and say it's a 'great community'.

Another 12 new houses are expected to be completed by the end of the year.

'Next year, another 58 KiwiBuild homes will be built at McLennan, the majority of which will be three-bedroom,' Twyford said.

'We're going to put a big emphasis on building whole new communities with great transport connections around the rail network particularly. KiwiBuild houses are going to be everywhere, in all of the main centres where there is a demand for affordable housing.'

Residents Anna and Jos Laurent moved into the area two an a half years ago through a former affordable homes scheme.

'We're just so grateful to have bought a house in Auckland and it's a great community to live in.'

She said the population in Papakura is exploding, so a better public transport system is 'quite important to us'.

Her husband, Jos, works in the city so 'I just train every day'.

For him, it's a five-minute drive to Papakura station and another 50 minutes on the train.

'It's a lot less stressful than driving, Papakura station's really safe, Takanini not so much.'

'There is a train station 700m from here which hasn't been used since 1981 … it's in between Takanini and Papakura. With all the development around, it will cut down travel for everyone around here.'

As for the safety aspect, he says they have a neighbourhood watch network and share a good relationship with the Papakura Police Station.

Their ideal neighbours would be 'young families, young professionals, anyone who shares the same idea to live in a safe and positive neighbourhood'.

The show home opens on September 8. Twyford said anyone considering entering the ballot for KiwiBuild homes at McLennan should get a thorough understanding of the property first.