Over 200 eligible for financial assistance with leaky homes

More than 200 owners of leaky homes have qualified for $23 million in assistance under the Leaky Homes Financial Assistance Package, of which $18 million is from the Government and $5 million from local councils, Building and Construction Minister Maurice Williamson said today.

The scheme - where homeowners may be eligible to have up to 50% of their repair costs paid by Government and the local council - became available on 29 July 2011.

The Department of Building and Housing has received hundreds of calls from homeowners inquiring about the scheme, and their website www.leakyhomes.govt.nz has had over 11,000 hits.

Over 2200 existing claimants have indicated their interest in the package.

“This is a great response from both existing and new claimants. We’re seeing the numbers grow every day and we’re hoping to get a lot more so that people can get their leaky homes fixed,” Mr Williamson said.

Around 70% of claims that qualify for the Financial Assistance Package are from Auckland, with nearly 20% split between Wellington and Tauranga and the rest from Hamilton, Christchurch, Whangarei, Hurunui, Taupo, and Kapiti Coast.

People who discover they own a leaky home must lodge a claim within 10 years of the completion of building work to access the Financial Assistance Package.

“Even if you only have a few days before 10 years is up, contact the Department of Building and Housing and ‘stop the clock’,” Mr Williamson said.

For more information visit www.leakyhomes.govt.nz.