Buying a Home

The process of buying a home in Canterbury has changed since the earthquakes. Raewyn Smith (Ngāi Tahu, Te Arawa) and her husband Stewart returned after a two-year teaching contract in Brunei Darussalam, looking to buy their first home. Their first baby is due in January.

Finding a property to purchase wasn’t the biggest hurdle, says Raewyn, a bi-lingual teacher at Tuahiwi School. “In general, insurance is really complicated and hard to get (in Canterbury).”

Without insurance the couple, who used the Whai Rawa Fund to help buy their home, couldn’t get a mortgage. “The insurance was really touch and go.”

The Smiths took the approach that many homebuyers and sellers in the country’s second-largest city are taking – they arranged for the vendor’s insurance to be transferred to their names. Only then was Westpac willing to offer them a mortgage on the Sydenham home.

 

 

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