​Tackling barriers to Māori housing

Iwi, financial and legal experts, banking sector representatives and Māori housing providers have gathered for the wānanaga in Auckland, hosted by Te Matapihi, with support from Te Puni Kōkiri.

“Getting finance is one of the biggest barriers that whānau face to build on Māori land. The whenua is collectively-owned so it is not usually accepted as security,” Hon Nanaia Mahuta said.

“It is time to work together with iwi, Māori housing providers and the finance sector to pursue innovative financing alternatives to improve access to finance to build on Māori land.

“A crucial part of government policy is to help more Māori get into housing, and there are great opportunities to partner with Māori to do this.”

Rau Hoskins, Chairperson of Te Matapihi says ‘it has long been on our agenda to address this issue on behalf of our people’.

“We are pleased to see the collaboration and willingness from all key parties now in finding a purpose designed solution to financing housing on Māori land.”

Te Matapihi He Tirohanga mō te Iwi is a national Māori housing advocacy and support organisation formed in 2011 and works with the wider Māori housing sector to achieve better Māori housing outcomes across Aotearoa.

“The Māori housing finance wānanga is an opportunity to think about the strengths and limitations of the current approach and to design innovative alternatives to make finance more accessible,” Nanaia Mahuta said.

Read the story on Scoop here.