Six further new Trust House social housing units are nearing completion on Ōpaki Rd in Masterton.
Trust House chief executive John Prendergast said site clearance and civil works for the six two-bedroom units began in July last year.
“The expected completion date, including council signoff,
is late May, we have existing tenants who will be moving into the units.
“According to the latest Ministry of Social Development figures, 132 people need one- and two-bedroom accommodation
in Masterton alone.”
Trust House will be seeking funding from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development [MHUD] via the Income Related Rent Subsidy Scheme [IRRS] for the Ōpaki Rd development As previously reported, six newly built Trust House social housing units in Kuripuni St have sat empty for five months as Trust House waits for funding from MHUD to help cover the majority of the intended tenants’ rental costs.
“With IRRS, tenants pay rent capped at 25 per cent of their income, and the government subsidises the rest of the rental, with the total rental being based on independent rental valuations,” Prendergast said.
“As with all other community housing providers, we rely on MHUD funding support to provide affordable community housing.”
In addition to Trust House’s new and existing social housing stock, national social housing provider Kāinga Ora returned to the region last year after being absent for 25 years.
Prendergast believes this will be a huge help in the quest to keep Wairarapa’s social housing waiting list down.
“They have announced a pipeline of housing developments that will soon begin to come on stream, further increasing the supply of houses in the region,” he said.
