An empty section and nowhere to go

Image of the empty section taken by SunLive on October 18 2018. Photo Nikki South.

A young couple who moved to Tauranga to start a new life have been caught up in a confused land package deal and spiralling building costs. And they now face becoming homeless.

Not a sod has been turned, not a nail hammered. All the family has is an empty section, and they now faces being thrown out of their rental property.

The frustrated family of five are currently living in Brookfield. And while they try to sort the confusion over their house build, their current rental has been put on the market, with the possibility of the house being sold any day.

'When it is sold, we will have 42 days' notice which could be anytime,” says Sheree.

Sheree Morrow and her partner moved to Tauranga nearly five years ago. They started working and started saving for a house. In 2016, they approached a builder with some section options to see if he would build them their dream home.

A developer provided them with a couple more house and land package options and the couple decided on a section on Pyes Pa Road. They started drawing up plans. But two years later the section remains bare and all they have are excuses as to why nothing has been done.

The developers, who wish not to be named, say they are doing everything they can to help out the family and are providing other sections for the family to consider.

They are also going through lawyers to find out why earthworks still haven't started two years down the track.

'We signed the contract and then things never progressed. We just kept getting told they were trying to get the sewage connected and that kind of stuff,” says Sheree.

'About 18 months or so had gone past and the house prices have just gone up that much that we are kind of out of the game, which is really frustrating.

'The builders bought the section off the developer and they were going to do us a house and land package. In regards to them, they are in that difficult spot too, where they had planned to do that, but it's just not happening.”

The Morrow family have been left asking ‘well what can we do'?

'We can't find anything else for the same sort of price value, it's starting to feel like we can't stay in Tauranga,” says Sheree.

'Two years ago, we paid our deposit, and we can ask for it back but that means that we are walking away from it and starting back at square one.”

Sheree and her partner now have three children, their middle child is autistic and has just been diagnosed as epileptic. Sheree says they are still trying to get the seizures under control.

'We need somewhere to go which ideally has a bit of grass for the little one, because she is very much an outdoor girl.”

Sheree has been left asking for help.

'I don't know whether a lawyer or somebody might be able to help investigate what's going on, or find us a rental to live in?”

'It feels awful but what else can we do?”

'I'm looking at rentals and house prices almost every single day, looking at absolutely everything. I'm just struggling to find anything out there that is suitable.”

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1 comment

Name and Shame

Posted on 19-10-2018 09:25 | By Sandra77

I'm not sure why you aren't publishing the name of the Builder and the Developer - this was all in the media yesterday - with all the names and more of a full story about this section/development than this?


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