Generate’s $14 Million Community Housing Investment Opens Its Doors To Families

Generate today welcomes the completion of 35 new community homes in Christchurch, funded through its $14 million investment in the project. The investment is one of Generate’s impact investments, which aim to make a positive difference to the lives of New Zealanders, whilst providing fair market returns for their KiwiSaver members.

Hon Dr Megan Woods opens Ōtautahi Community Housing

Generate Portfolio Manager, Ayrton Oliver, says this milestone is a fitting way for the boutique KiwiSaver and managed fund provider to continue to celebrate its 10-year anniversary, after announcing market-leading results last month.

“Working together with Community Finance and Ōtautahi Community Housing Trust shows the potential influence that investing can have on social outcomes for New Zealand, as well as the financial returns for Generate KiwiSaver members over the long-term,” says Mr Oliver.

Community Finance facilitates and manages lending by issuing community bonds, which provide an innovative way to tackle the housing crisis where wholesale investors support the financing of homes that are owned and managed by leading charitable community housing providers, such as ŌCHT.

“Responsible investing has become a real priority for the industry and is part of our DNA at Generate. We want to do more than just tick that box, we want to invest for impact, and welcoming 35 families into new and energy efficient homes is a tangible demonstration of the effect that our investments are having on the lives of everyday New Zealanders, and we’re really proud of that.”

The homes in Christchurch not only support New Zealanders who might be struggling because of the cost of living, and the shortage of affordable housing, they’re also meeting many sustainability goals by achieving the New Zealand Green Building Council’s Homestar 7 standard.

“Generate’s investment shows a strong commitment to improving the lives of New Zealanders, and demonstrates that they are focused on making measurable and beneficial impact in the community. Their investment is also helping to build a community and improve the standard of living for the families moving in, which we know will have significant implications,” says James Palmer, Community Finance Chief Executive.

Since 2020, Generate has invested over $45 million into affordable housing for New Zealanders with partners including Community Finance as well as the Salvation Army and Brightlight. The opening of these 35 homes in Christchurch means Generate has contributed to the financing of 192 new homes.

“We’re really proud to be supporting Community Finance’s ‘community-to-community’ model. It allows Kiwis to help Kiwis, which was one of Generate’s goals 10 years ago. We look forward to continuing our impact investment journey, whilst trying to continue the delivery of long-term market leading returns to our members,” says Mr Oliver.

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