Te iwi o Ngāti Toa Rangatira are now the proud owners of a 24 apartment property in Titahi Bay.

Te Rūnanga o Toa Rangatira Chief Executive Officer Helmut Modlik is excited with the purchase of 24 View Road, saying that iwi ownership now offers a viable option for iwi members to enter the property market.

“Home ownership in New Zealand’s current property market is a hard task for most New Zealanders. The dream for our iwi is to utilise the assets we have to support our whānau into quality housing with affordable and viable home ownership options,” Helmut said.

“The purchase of the apartments is part of achieving our aspiration to enhance the health and wellbeing of Ngāti Toa Rangatira whānau through providing healthy and affordable housing.”

It was agreed at a Porirua City Council meeting on Thursday 17 June, to sell the 24 apartments to Te Rūnanga o Toa Rangatira.

11 of the 24 apartments have undergone refurbishment and have code of compliance, with the remaining 13 properties requiring remediation works.

Helmut says that while a robust Request for Proposal (RFP) process will be required to ensure transparency in contracting remedial work, when the time is right the Rūnanga will welcome iwi tradespeople to tender for this work as an additional opportunity for iwi members and whānau.

“One of our key strategies to ensure affordable home ownership is to offer low-cost annual landlease agreements in perpetuity, while enabling individal purchase of each unit and their chattels,” Helmut said.

“This means that the land will remain an iwi asset, but individual owners will own their homes and the chattels within them and remain free to make home improvements and build the value of their privately owned asset.”

“The next step for us is to take ownership of the property, which is expected to take place on 30 June 2021, and then kōrero with our whānau to discuss our options as an iwi.” 

“We are also committed to pursuing the purchase of other properties to secure a sustainable future for more of our people.”

© Scoop Media