Eligibility

This privacy statement applies to personal information collected by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s (“MHUD”) KiwiBuild Unit (“KiwiBuild”) through the website at www.KiwiBuild.govt.nz (“the KiwiBuild website”). The statement applies to personal information collected on the application forms that are accessible on the KiwiBuild website. It also includes how personal information is treated if you call the MBIE service centre.

Your personal information

You can use the KiwiBuild website without disclosing any personal information.

Voluntary disclosure of personal information

You may choose to voluntarily provide personal information through the KiwiBuild website, for example on one of the following KiwiBuild application forms:

- Application to become a eligible KiwiBuild purchaser; and

- Application to enter a ballot for a KiwiBuild home; and

- Application to register as a KiwiBuild developer

This information will be viewable by: MHUD staff as required for the processing, assessment, and maintenance of KiwiBuild applications, the KiwiBuild ballot system generally; MHUD site administrators; and third-party contractors who administrate or work on the site or MHUD systems.

Collection of personal information

KiwiBuild will require you to provide certain information on the KiwiBuild application form(s), if you wish to: become a eligible purchaser of KiwiBuild homes; enter a ballot for a KiwiBuild home. If you do not provide all of the information that is required on an application form KiwiBuild may be unable to process or otherwise progress your applications.

KiwiBuild may ask or require you (including where required by any applicable legislation administered by MHUD) to provide personal information. MHUD may also collect information that you voluntarily disclose, for example through the KiwiBuild website. The supply of your information is voluntary, but if you do not supply mandatory information required in any KiwiBuild application you submit, your application may not be accepted.

Holding of information

When you provide personal information, it will be held by KiwiBuild.

It may be stored or accessed on behalf of KiwiBuild by authorised third parties (such as third-party contractors) to the extent that is necessary, for example for them to administrate or work on the site.  We will store and keep personal information secure in accordance with the Privacy Act 1993 and agents will be subject to MHUD’s information security and privacy requirements.

Disclosure of information

MHUD will generally not share personal information that is provided or collected through this website, unless it is necessary to do so for the purpose for which you gave us the information (e.g. to monitor or enforce compliance with obligations agreed to under the KiwiBuild scheme) or where you authorise the disclosure. MHUD will not otherwise disclose personal information provided or collected through this website unless required or otherwise permitted by law.

By entering a ballot for a KiwiBuild home, you authorize KiwiBuild to disclose your name and contact details if your name is drawn in that ballot.

From time to time KiwiBuild may develop and publish reports containing aggregated data on the KiwiBuild scheme. Individuals will not be personally identifiable in any such report.

Use of personal information

We will generally only use personal information provided to us through this website for the purpose you provided it. These purposes include: administering the KiwiBuild scheme; assessing an application you have submitted; and monitoring or enforcing compliance with obligations under the KiwiBuild scheme. We may also use the information you provide to deliver our services, including to administer, evaluate and improve the KiwiBuild website; and to action or respond to the information you have provided.

We may contact you with:

- Information about an upcoming ballot for a KiwiBuild home; and

- General information about KiwiBuild

We may use personal information provided to us through the KiwiBuild website for other reasons permitted under the Privacy Act (e.g. with your consent, for a directly related purpose, or where the law permits or requires it).

We may also use the information you provide to us for statistical or research purposes, including to provide aggregated reports on the KiwiBuild scheme. You will not be personally identifiable when we use your information for these purposes.

Records and retention of personal information

MHUD will only retain personal information as long as it is required for the purposes for which the information may lawfully be used.

Public records

Where any information provided (which may include personal information) to or through this site constitute public records, it will be retained to the extent required by the Public Records Act 2005. MHUD may also be required to disclose information under the Official Information Act 1982 or to a Parliamentary Select Committee or Parliament in response to a Parliamentary Question.

Security

MHUD websites have security measures in place to prevent the loss, misuse and alteration of information under our control. In order to maintain the cyber security of MHUD systems and information, MHUD systems are subject to ongoing monitoring (including activity logging), analysis and auditing.

We may use information about your use of our websites and other IT systems to prevent unauthorised access or attacks on these systems or to resolve such events. We may use this information even if you are not involved in such activity. MHUD may utilise services from one or more third party suppliers to monitor or maintain the cyber security of its systems and information. These third party suppliers will have access to monitoring and logging information as well as information processed on MHUD websites and other IT systems.

Call recording

As part of our commitment to providing the best possible service to our customers we record all telephone calls answered in the MBIE service centre. This helps us to identify ways that we can provide you with a better service.

We record calls:

- for staff training purposes, helping us to improve the quality of our customer service and to ensure the information we provide is consistent and accurate;

- so we can find ways to simplify our service to you; and

- to ensure we have an accurate record of your call, which may be needed to document any actions that take place over the phone and/or if there is a dispute.

We understand your personal information is important to you, and we are committed to protecting your privacy. We store the recordings securely for two years and destroy them after this period.

Unless we have lawful reason for withholding this information, it will be made available if you request access to a transcript of your call by emailing the KiwiBuild Unit at info@kiwibuild.govt.nz or by phoning 04 901 8752 and asking for the Privacy Officer.

Rights of access and correction

You have the right to:

- Find out from us whether we hold personal information about you;

- Access that information;

- If applicable, request corrections to that information

If MHUD has a good reason for refusing a request for correction, you are entitled to request that a statement be attached to the information of the correction that was sought but not made. If you want to access your personal information:

Privacy Officer
Ministry of Housing and Urban Development
PO Box 82
Wellington 6140
 

For more information on the privacy laws in New Zealand and contact details for the Office of the Privacy Commissioner, please visit the website of the Office of the Privacy Commissioner at www.privacy.org.nz.

Statistical information

We may collect statistical information about your visit and use this information to help us improve this site. This information is aggregated and non-personally identifying.  The statistical information referred to below will be viewable by site administrators and other MHUD staff for the purpose of improving this site. It may also be shared with other government agencies.

Statistical information includes:

- the search terms you used;

- the pages you accessed on our Site and the links you clicked on;

- the date and time you visited the site;

- the referring site (if any) through which you clicked through to this Site;

- the device you used to access the site;

- your operating system (e.g. Windows XP, Mac OSX);

- the type of web browser you use (e.g. Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox); and

- incidental matters such as screen resolution, the release of the version of Flash software installed on your computer (if any) and the language setting of your browser.

Cookies

Browser or ‘web’ cookies are small text files that are sent by a website and stored on your computer's hard drive. Cookies are generally used to improve your experience of a website (for example by remembering preferences you have set) and to track site usage.

KiwiBuild uses cookies to gather data about trends in use of the KiwiBuild website using a tool called Google Analytics. We also use cookies to gather data about your browsing history on the KiwiBuild website. We may use this data to enhance your browsing experience, improve the KiwiBuild website, identify whether you have seen our marketing material before you visited our site, and target advertising to you.

You can read Google’s privacy statement, and access a Google Analytics opt-out tool, at the Google Privacy Center.

You can manually disable cookies at any time - check your browser's 'Help' to find out how. Disabling cookies will not affect your ability to browse the KiwiBuild website.

Contact us if you have an enquiry or concern about this privacy statement.

This privacy statement was last updated on: 28 Jan 2019

To be eligible to buy a KiwiBuild home, you must be:
• A New Zealand citizen
• A New Zealand permanent resident
• A resident visa holder who is "ordinarily resident in New Zealand"

If you are applying with a spouse, partner or de-facto partner, only one of you will need to meet these requirements.

If you are a resident visa holder, you are considered to be "ordinarily resident in New Zealand" if you:
• have been living in New Zealand for at least the past 12 months; and
• have been in New Zealand for at least 183 days in total in the past 12 months; and
• are tax resident in New Zealand, meaning that you meet the criteria above and you have a long-term connection to New Zealand (e.g you have work or family ties to the country).

Other visa types are not eligible, even if you normally reside in New Zealand.

If you have never had a legal interest in a home in New Zealand or overseas, then you meet the property ownership eligibility criteria for KiwiBuild.

If you currently have a legal interest in a home in New Zealand or overseas, you are not eligible. If you are in a relationship with a person who is the registered owner of a home (e.g. you are married to, or in a civil union or de facto partnership with the person whose name is on the title to a home), and if the home is defined as relationship property in the Property Relationships Act 1976, you are not eligible.

If you have previously had a legal interest in a home, but you no longer own a home, you may still be eligible to buy a KiwiBuild home. You must meet all other criteria and your realisable assets cannot add up to more than:

• $120,000 for all applicants who are buying a KiwiBuild home in Auckland or Queenstown Lakes District
• $100,000 for applicants who are buying a KiwiBuild home in the following locations
   - Hamilton City
   - Tauranga City
   - Western Bay of Plenty District
   - Kapiti Coast District
   - Porirua City
   - Upper Hutt City
   - Hutt City
   - Wellington City
   - Nelson City
   - Tasman District
   - Waimakariri District
   - Christchurch City
   - Selwyn District
• $80,000 for applicants who are buying a KiwiBuild home in the rest of New Zealand.

Realisable assets are belongings that you can sell to help buy a home. The following are considered to be realisable assets:
• money in bank accounts (including fixed and term deposits)
• shares, stocks and bonds
• investments in banks or financial institutions
• building society shares
• boat or caravan (if the value is over $5,000)
• other vehicles (such as classic vehicles not being used as your usual method of transport)
• other individual assets valued over $5,000.

Your KiwiSaver funds do not count as realisable assets, even if you want to use that money to help purchase your home.

Annual income before tax:
Income is money received from any source, including wages, salary, overtime pay, pensions, investment income, etc. Proof of income must be provided in Part C. The maximum household income for KiwiBuild eligibility is:
• One purchaser = $120,000
• Two or more purchasers = $180,000

Annual income does not include:
• Tax credits such as Working for Families
• Investment income such as KiwiSaver or retirement investments
• Non-taxable income such as allowances and scholarships
• Secondary benefits such as Accommodation Supplements

Speak to your financial institution to determine a pre-approval amount based on your cirucmstances. To enter a ballot for a specific KiwiBuild home, you will need pre-approval for the price of that particular home. If you have pre-approved finance for less than the home you want to enter a ballot for, or your pre-approval will have expired by the close of that ballot, you will need to provide current and sufficient proof of finance at the time of entering the ballot.