The New Zealand Housing Foundation exists to help low income New Zealanders achieve their aspiration of living independently, affordably and sustainably in a stable environment in both their home and their community. This is achieved by increasing the supply and availability of social and affordable housing.

This project set out to investigate the impact of Housing Foundation (HF) mixed blind tenure developments on the quality of life of residents. The aim was to use the Glen Eden development (referred to as “HF Glen Eden”) as a case study to help develop a methodology that can be used in most, if not all, HF developments to monitor and evaluate success and thereby contribute to improvement in HF activities.

The fieldwork for the study was conducted in October 2012 and the initial report prepared in February 2012. Since then the Housing Foundation have been working with CityScope Consultants to determine how best to incorporate the findings into other developments and to finalise the report.

The households assisted by HF including in this development, are renters who have a low working income and are locked out of the home ownership market. These households are often referred to as “can work, can’t own” and they form the bulk of the intermediate housing market which is now a significant segment of the housing market, existing between social housing and market rental sectors. It is a sector that is forecasted to grow considerably as house prices continue to rise faster than household incomes.

Research Objectives
The objectives of the research were to determine whether:
– planned affordable housing developments have an impact on a household’s quality of life;
– living in an affordable home impacts on the quality of life of the householders.

Research Approach
The research has been carried out in three stages:
1) Literature Review
2) In-depth interviews with eight resident households at HF Glen Eden
3) A survey of residents living there (n=47) including both HF clients and tenants of 3rd party social housing providers. Residents of the neighbouring Albionvale Rd catchment (n=23) were also surveyed.

The final report outlines the findings from Stages 2 and 3. The results of the literature review are reported separately.

City Scope – New Zealand Hosing Foundation Final Report

For more information contact Dominic Foote:
dominic.f@housingfoundation.co.nz
0800 4 HOUSING (446 874)

Words from New Zealand Housing Foundation.