Hi everyone it's Helen Hotai here founder of 'Form Help' and today we are looking at how to
apply for public housing in new zealand and if you're not sure how to go about to doing
that let's go and do it together and we are in the working income dot gov dot nz website and i
will post a link in the description box below but today we are looking at housing so let's go ahead
and go into the housing tab find a house now it says find a house if you need to find a place to
live we may be able to help you you may be able to apply for public or social housing
or get some ideas on where to look for private housing if you have nowhere to stay right now
we may be able to help you find somewhere until you can get something longer term
okay we're going to be looking at some public housing here so if you can't afford a private
rental you may be able to live in a public house where the government pays part of the rent
these are houses that are rented out by kong ora which used to be housing new zealand and other
community housing providers you need to meet certain criteria to qualify for public housing
if you apply you may have to wait for a while until a suitable property becomes available
so who can get public housing let's have a look so if you want to apply to live in public or social
housing you need to meet a certain criteria so let's look at that criteria so age and residency
now you must be 16 or older you also need to meet to one of these residency criteria which
is you're a nz citizen you have a residence visa or permanent residence visa and have lived in
nz continuously for its least two years since getting in you're recognised as a refugee by
immigration new zealand you're recognised as a protected person by immigration new zealand you're
getting a main benefit from us example jobseeker support or you fit into one of these categories
you have a christchurch responsive visa you get christchurch mosque attack assistance or
you get a special needs grant because you came to nz on a temporary visa
to be with your nz partner and your relationship ended due to domestic violence okay so you must
meet at least one of this these criteria here now let's look at serious housing need
now you must have a serious housing need this means we'll look at things like
your current housing situation including the property's physical condition
if the property has basic living facilities overcrowding how secure your tenancy is
whether your current property or area is safe for you and suitable for your medical
or physical needs whether you could afford to rent privately how difficult it is to find a
private rental that to meet your needs and whether you could manage long term in a private rental
let's look at the income and assets generally you will need to have an income under 655 dollars and
41 cents a week that's after tax if you're single with no children and one thousand and
eight dollars and 33 cents a week after tax if you have a partner or children
now your cash assets worth needs to be worth less than forty two thousand seven hundred dollars
if you have income or assets worth more than this you may still qualify for
public housing it depends on your situation let's go ahead and apply for public housing
now apply for public housing find out how to apply for public or social housing
if you're an urgent housing need and have nowhere to live now or in the next seven days
call this number here working income on zero eight hundred five five nine double zero nine
or senior services on zero eight hundred five five two double zero two if you get
nz super or veterans pension now this is the application process we'll start with step one
which is call us so you need to call them on zero eight hundred double five nine
double zero nine if you get nz super or veterans pension um course senior
services on zero eight hundred double five two double zero two step two discuss your situation
we'll talk with you about your situation and look at ways we can help you this includes checking
what support you might be able to get to move into private housing for example help with rent or bond
if we think you may qualify for public housing we'll book a housing assessment
interview for you this is usually done over the phone but you can come in and see us if you would
prefer now who can get public housing so if you click on that tab there it will tell you who can
get to public housing we will get to that so i'll just read supports person or interpreter so if you
want a support person at your interview you can organize to have one with you
if you can't speak english you can bring someone to interpret for you or we can find an interpreter
for you just let us know so we can organize this step 3 attend an interview so the interview will
take about an hour and we'll talk to you about your situation and the type of housing you need
confirm you meet the criteria for public housing you'll need to tell us at least three areas where
you could live so you can be matched to a suitable property now the documents you need to provide
we'll also ask you to gather some some documents and drop them off to one of our service centers
we'll let you know what documents you need to get these could be proof of who you are such as
your birth certificate passport or driver license proof of any income after tax you've got you've
got in the last 52 weeks such as wages holiday pay family tax credits and any other income
proof of any assets you have and their value your business accounts if you have your own business
trust documents if you are involved in a trust such as trust deed deed of debt gift
statements or accounts four birth certificates for each dependent's child in your care we may
ask you to bring the same documents for other members of your household who are moving with
you household members are people who permanently live with you now step four is wait for a property
now if you qualify for public housing you'll go on the social housing register
the register has details of people who need public housing and the type of property they need
or pass the register onto housing providers who will let you know when a suitable property becomes
available there are some things you'll need to do while you're waiting to get into public housing
now let's have a look at what that is waiting for public housing
so once you apply for public housing you need to wait until a suitable property
becomes available you'll also need to tell us if your situation changes while you're waiting
now how long you have to wait now the length of time you have to wait depends on
how urgently you need a property how quickly a property a suitable property becomes available
what your needs are the number of other people waiting with urgent needs people of
the greatest needs are placed first when suitable properties become available a suitable property
is one that to make sure housing needs as agreed during your interview while waiting for a property
it's important to keep looking for other options like rental properties and the private market
there's a link there to find private housing now tell us if something changes now while you're
waiting to get into a public house you must let us know straight away about any changes in your
and your partners if you have one circumstances this could be changes to your address and phone
number income or financial circumstances family or household arrangements if you don't let us
know you might not be able to get a property that best meets your needs or you may not no
longer qualify for public housing we may also contact you to talk about your circumstances it's
important that you answer our calls or letters you may think you no longer need public housing
and cancel your application step 5 accept a public housing offer if a housing provider makes you an
offer for a property and it meets your needs you can accept this by signing the tenancy agreement
accepting a public housing offer accepting a public housing offer
if a housing provider makes you an offer for a property and it suits your needs you can
accept this by signing the tenancy agreement the housing provider will contact you invite
and invite you to view the property if you're happy with it you'll sign a tenancy agreement
with the housing provider they'll then become your landlord the tenancy agreement sets out
your rights and responsibilities and the landlord's rights and responsibilities now
if you don't accept the offer if an offer for a property comes up you can choose not to accept it
if you have a good reason example there are stairs which you find hard to climb
because you've had a knee replacement if you don't accept the offer you don't have
a good reason or check that you still qualify for public housing this means you must have a
serious and immediate housing need if you don't you may be taken off the social housing register
if you apply for public housing within 13 weeks we'll look at your decision to decline the offer
when checking if you meet the criteria and that concludes our video for today i hope that those
looking to apply for public housing within new zealand found this helpful and all the best on
your application now please don't forget to like share and subscribe if you feel inclined to do so
this is Helen Hotai founder of 'Form Help' signing out have a wonderful day everyone!