First home buyers share their journeys

The friend group buying together...

Cardiac nurse Grace (24) and Beth (24) have been best friends since meeting at intermediate school almost 15 years ago. Beth’s husband Reuben (25), who works in Māori mental health, is a relative newcomer to the friendship dynamic – having married Beth almost 3.5 years ago. For this trio, the idea of buying a house together was born out of a throwaway comment. But as time has gone on, they’ve realised it makes perfect sense – Grace can’t get onto the property ladder alone and with a bit of extra support Beth and Reuben might be able to realise the dream of owning a house AND maintaining some work-life balance.

They hope to find a house that’s close to a park where Beth and Reuben volunteer, ideally with three bedrooms, an outdoor area and space for Beth to run her bridal hair styling business from home. Also on the wish list for Beth is a house with some character features. Reuben and Grace are in favour of a home that doesn’t require too much maintenance. Their budget is around $550,000.

In charge of making sure their finances align is spreadsheet king Reuben. He and Beth are using their KiwiSaver and additional savings as well as a small loan from parents to cover their share of the deposit. Grace’s savings journey has been remarkable – she has gathered her 50% share of the deposit by putting aside half of her income since she started working. Together they hope it’s enough to find a home they can call their own.

The couple buying together but living apart

Loving couple Paula (41, Commercial Procurement Manager) and Gordon (39, IT Manager) met at work four years ago and want to buy a house together, but want to maintain their independence by continuing to live separately. Currently Paula rents while Gordon lives in his own home nearby. It’s the ideal setup for them which honours their independence and their own unique habits – Gordon eats dinner early, Paula prefers to eat later and they both love their personal space.

They have been looking for almost a year for a house that maintains their geographical closeness whilst also ticking the other boxes on their wish list. First home buyer Paula needs three bedrooms to ensure she has room to host family when they visit from Argentina as well as space to pursue her passion for sewing. She is also looking for a garden where she can exercise her green thumb and where dog Ciri can play. Plus a garage for her car – all for a budget of around $740,000.

If they can find 'the one’, Paula will service the mortgage entirely herself whilst Gordon will contribute to the deposit. He’s also looking forward to contributing his DIY and home maintenance skills to help turn their dream house into Paula’s home.

The friends with DIY dreams

Ciaran (37) and Ben (33) have been good friends for around ten years. Currently Ciaran is renting whilst Ben owns his own townhouse... but hopefully not for much longer! These friends want to buy a house together - a renovation project they can make their mark on. As a recently graduated architect, first-time buyer Ciaran is itching to use his creativity on a house. Rocket technician Ben is keen to help his friend achieve this, whilst also using his own DIY skills and building equity.  

Whilst his house has been on the market, Ben and Ciaran have looked at nearly 50 properties in the hope of finding one that fulfils their wish list. They have a budget of $800k-$1 million which they hope will buy them a three bedroom, stand alone house with a bit of land. They want a classic brick and tile or weatherboard bungalow with potential to extend and do some landscaping. They are open to a variety of locations approximately 20-minutes drive from Auckland’s CBD.  

A very organised pair, they do their research on each property they visit and systematically keep notes on every open home. Outside of house hunting Ben and Ciaran like traveling together and usually do at least one annual snowboarding holiday. This could prove to be an issue once they’ve bought as they expect servicing a mortgage will necessitate a cut back on spending.  

As a first-time buyer, Ciaran is able to access his KiwiSaver for his share of the deposit whilst Ben will use the proceeds of his house sale for his share. The price he achieves will dictate how much this creative pair have left over for renovations! 

The investors looking for a doer-upper...

Dairy farmer Sam (32) and Mum/Support worker Ash (33) have been best friends since meeting at an exercise class seven years ago. Ash owns her own home in Otorohanga where she lives with her 13-year-old son Khyem, while Sam lives and works on a dairy farm near Te Awamutu. They still love to exercise together as well as a variety of other things – Sam loves “dragging Ash up mountains” to share her love for hiking and they often meet up to talk about their life goals whilst watching the sunset from the back of Sam’s pink camo ute!

At the top of Sam’s life goal list is to own her own farm one day, whilst Ash wants to build equity and ensure a secure future for herself and her son. To reach those goals they’ve come up with a plan – to invest in a property together. Ash will use savings and the existing equity in her house and first-home buyer Sam will access her KiwiSaver for a deposit. They hope this will be enough to secure a do-up they can really sink their teeth into. These two women can turn their hands to almost any DIY task. They will live in the house whilst renovating it – they want a house with really good ‘bones’ and a backyard – something with the potential to become an inviting home for a local family.  

They are excited to be embarking on this project together – but whilst they align on most things – decor may prove a sticking point. Ash is a fan of neutrals, whilst for Sam there is only one colour that matters – pink! 

The two couples with an apartment in mind

Partners Jihwan and Rosie and married couple Tom and Dahee (all late 20s) met at university. Bonding over their shared experience of moving from South Korea to New Zealand as teenagers, the four have a tight friendship which they think will serve them well on their next adventure – buying a house together!

Jihwan, an architect, is itching to put his creative touch on his first property. Tom, an accountant, brings the financial expertise and - along with wife Dahee -already has experience of home ownership.  

Their dream property is a central city character apartment – something in a historic building with scope to renovate. Having all grown up in apartments, these friends all embrace the idea of apartment living – they see it as the future for Auckland and would like to be able to show how small spaces can make great homes. 

Jihwan has big dreams; and Rosie is also really creative, she works in fashion but has studied interior design and architecture and likes the idea of using her skills to really transform a home. Tom is the more pragmatic of the group and doesn't always see eye-to-eye with his creative friends. This journey will reveal whether they can draw on their different strengths to find a property that ticks all their creative and financial boxes.  

Primary school friends who are hoping to leverage co-ownership for their own homes down the track

The friendship between mates Saxon, Matt and Ryan (all 23) has seen them through primary school, high school and flatting together. These three are bonded by their shared love for sport – Matt is a skilled rower and president of his rowing club, Ryan plays club rugby and Saxon plays club cricket as well as being in the Volley Blacks, New Zealand’s national volleyball team. They are hoping their love for competition will come in handy for an exciting project they have decided to pursue – buying a house together. 

Initiated by Saxon (who works in logistics), these guys hope co-ownership will put them on the right path to successfully owning their own individual homes one day. Ryan and Matt (a transport engineer) overcame some initial trepidation to commit to the idea, now they are all excited to find a house they can add value to. They are all willing to roll up their sleeves and get stuck into some DIY – Ryan in particular brings some skills to the project, he is a structural engineer.  

They are looking for a house that hits the DIY sweet spot – not already renovated, but not so much of a do-er upper that it sucks up the time they have for sporting commitments. The juggle between work, sport and home-ownership is likely to feel very real for this high-achieving trio.  

The siblings looking for a new build

Kevin (31) and younger sister JC (28) are both hard-working healthcare workers who emigrated with their family to Aotearoa from the Philippines as teenagers. The siblings are close, but it hasn't always been that way - they say they fought like cats and dogs as kids, but as adults they've capitalised on a shared love of gaming and skateboarding. Sick of the flatting life, they hope that pooling their resources will be the key to buying their own place. 

Kevin has been wanting to own a house for a while but has struggled to get on the ladder alone. As a duo Kevin and JC were able to access the First Home Grant just before it was discontinued. This gave them a $10,000 boost to their deposit and opened up more options for them.  

Ideally they want to find a brand new property in West Auckland where they can be close to some extended family. Somewhere with 3 bedrooms, enough space for the two of them plus Kevin’s partner and a fenced section for their dogs, Chaos and Alaska, who are currently living up North with family. Family means the world to these two, and they see this property journey as not only setting themselves up financially but also beneficial to their whole whānau.  

The mother and son duo hoping to step off the rental ladder

A mum’s desire to see her son set up with life-long security is at the heart of this pair’s journey toward home ownership. Currently living separately - Te Rōpu (59) in Kerikeri and her son Katene (24) in Whangārei - this hard-working duo are ready to move on from the renting life.  

With a high-level career in Māori development that sees her commuting regularly from Kerikeri to work in Whangārei, Te Rōpu is slowly coming around to the idea of buying a property close to work after initially favouring a place in the Bay of Islands. Whangārei-loyal Katene works remotely as a web developer, so he needs a place that can accommodate a good home office set-up. 

But above all else, they want a home that can be flexible to their long-term needs – with the possibility for separate living spaces and enough space to host whānau and friends (and accommodate Te Rōpu’s dog and motorbike!). 

This is a journey back on the property ladder for Te Rōpu after previously having her own homes. For dedicated saver Katene this is an exciting first step into home ownership – he is eager to get onto the property ladder at a young age. They are both excited and feel lucky to be able to do this together. But it’s a tough market out there, they’ve been looking for a while – they know that securing the perfect property will likely require some compromise.