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Only four vacant state houses in Chch

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4 state houses in Chch, dozens needed

3News NZ

24 priority A state housing tenants in Canterbury are on the waiting list

24 priority A state housing tenants in Canterbury are on the waiting list

Housing New Zealand has four vacant houses in Canterbury but there are dozens of tenants on the waiting list with an immediate need for accommodation.

Housing New Zealand (HNZ) says it's trying to match the vacant houses with urgent requirements.

There are 24 priority A state housing tenants in Canterbury on the HNZ waiting list.

The need of these applicants is assessed as being "at risk", which are households with a severe and persistent housing need.

A further 65 waiting priority B tenants are assessed as having a "serious" need for accommodation.

HNZ southern tenancy service manager Symon Leggett says although there is a waiting list, a person who has an urgent need for housing and fulfils the criteria can often be quickly accommodated.

"State rental properties are allocated on the basis of need not length of time on the waiting list, so some people who apply may reach the top of the list quickly," Mr Leggett said.

"The houses need to match the number of people that will be living in them, the requested location and sometimes a range of other personal needs. This means that while a house may be a poor fit for one tenant or family, it will work for another."

About 95 percent of HNZ's 6117 houses in Canterbury were damaged in the earthquakes since September 2010, with 5375 houses now able to be occupied.

There are fast-tracked repairs on 212 vacant damaged properties and it's expected these will be done by the end of October.

Work will soon start on building between 200 and 350 new state houses over the next 18 months.

NZN

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Comments

21/11/2012 9:57:51 p.m.

Rebecca Black wrote:

There are so many needing repair or are planned for demolition. Wouldn't it be cheaper to buy those cheap near new home that are for relocation here in Chch or save those good near new houses that will be pulled down because the land is red zoned and the government has paid out for them already makes sense.

6/08/2012 11:16:33 p.m.

Kerry Driscoll wrote:

I think we need to get some good, well-planned social housing built ASAP. This homeless problem is only going to get worse as people have to move out of the red zone - and God help us if we get another quake. In the short term could some Army style village assist for the most desperate of people? It is not good to have our poorest, and least able to help themselves, living in caravans, cars or worse. The picture above is misleading, most houses are smaller, units or flats. Our aged, infirm or challenged need immediate support. A society is measured by the way it treats it's more vulnerable people, and it's children. People do care by the way.

3/08/2012 8:39:09 p.m.

kelvyn wrote:

Single people or couples with no children do not need large houses. Most state houses are about 2X too big for these tenants. Why not design prefabricated buildings more suitable for these people. They can then if required be unassembled or transported fully built to areas where the need is, either within the city or indeed anywhere in NZ. Many older people desire two bedroom housing simply in case the children or grand children come to stay. Why not make a simple fold down bed, bed/sofa arrangement standard equipment in every single bedroom house and eliminate the need for a second bedroom. Smaller house, cheaper to build, cheaper to heat, easier to clean, transportable if the market changes.