Sustaining Tenancies

Sustaining Tenancies works to prevent homelessness by funding community-based services to help individuals, families and whānau who are at risk of losing their tenancy.

Who is Sustaining Tenancies for?

Sustaining Tenancies is a service for tenants in private rentals or public housing who are at risk of losing their place to live.

Tailored support

Sustaining Tenancies service providers work with tenants on issues that are putting their tenancy at risk.

Those issues could range from struggling to pay their rent, to dealing with mental or physical health concerns, or risk factors such as addiction or family violence.

Support is tailored for each individual or whānau. Support services will work with tenants to see what they need and to develop a whānau-led plan. The type and level of support services they receive will be based on this plan and could include:

advocacy with landlords
advocacy and support to navigate social and health services
referral to budgeting services
life skills coaching.

When tenants are on track with their whānau-led goal plan and are no longer at risk of losing their tenancy, the support service will work with them on a new plan that will see them no longer needing to use Sustaining Tenancies’ services.

How tenants can access the Sustaining Tenancies’ services

Tenants can refer themselves or be referred by another agency or community organisation. Support service providers can reach out to tenants through:

government departments and agencies
public and private landlords and tenancy services
local Māori organisations and iwi
local GPs and health navigators
local community organisations.

Find Sustaining Tenancies support services

Service	Area
Kāhui Tū Kaha	Wellsford / Whangārei / Dargaville
He Korowai Trust	Kaitaia
Ngāti Hine Health Trust	Whangārei / Kawakawa / Kaikohe / Kerikeri
One Double Five Whare Awhina Community House	Whangārei
Waitomo Papakāinga Development Society Incorporated	Kaitaia

Auckland

Service	Area
Auckland City Mission	Central Auckland
De Paul House	Central Auckland / North Shore / Warkworth
Emerge Aotearoa	West Auckland / North Shore
Kāhui Tū Kaha	East Auckland / Central Auckland / North Shore
Lifewise	Central Auckland
LinkPeople	South Auckland
Monte Cecilia Housing Trust	South Auckland / Papakura / Takanini
MUMA Whānau Services	South Auckland
STRIVE Community Trust	South Auckland
Te Whānau o Waipareira	West Auckland
The Salvation Army	West Auckland / South Auckland
Turuki Healthcare	Central Auckland / South Auckland
VisionWest Community Trust	West Auckland
WALSH Trust	West Auckland / North Shore

Waikato

Service	Area
LinkPeople	Hamilton
Emerge Aotearoa	Hamilton
Taumarunui Community Kōkiri Trust	Taumarunui / Te Kuiti
Waiuku Family Support Network	Hamilton / Ngāruawāhia / Huntly

Bay of Plenty

Service	Area
LinkPeople	Tauranga / Rotorua
The Salvation Army	Whakatāne / Ōpōtiki / Rotorua
WERA Aotearoa Community Trust (WACT)	Tokoroa / Rotorua

Taranaki

Service	Area
Roderique Hope Trust	New Plymouth/Waitara/Hawera

East Coast and Hawke's Bay

Service	Area
Emerge Aotearoa	Napier / Hastings
Te Runanganui o Ngāti Porou (TRONPnui)	Gisborne
The Salvation Army	Napier / Hastings

Central

Service	Area
Emerge Aotearoa	Palmerston North / Masterton
Tuatahi Centre	Palmerston North / Feilding

Wellington

Service	Area
Atareira	Upper Hutt
DCM	Wellington Central
Emerge Aotearoa	Lower Hutt / Porirua
He Herenga Kura	Wellington and Hutt Valley
Tākiri Mai Te Ata Whānau Ora Collective	Lower Hutt
Tuatahi Centre	Wainuiomata
Wesley Community Action	Porirua

Marlborough and Tasman

Service	Area
Christchurch Methodist Mission	Blenheim
Gateway Housing Trust	Tasman

West Coast

Service	Area
Gateway Housing Trust	West Coast

Canterbury

Service	Area
Comcare	Christchurch
Christchurch Methodist Mission	Christchurch
Emerge Aotearoa	Christchurch
VisionWest Community Trust	Christchurch

Southern

Service	Area
Catholic Social Services Dunedin	Dunedin
Emerge Aotearoa	Southland / Dunedin
Methodist Mission Southern	Southland

The history of Sustaining Tenancies

Sustaining Tenancies started in 2017 as a trial to support 940 individuals and whānau who were at risk of losing their public housing tenancies in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch. A further 650 places were added to the trial between October 2019 and June 2020.

The programme has been redesigned and expanded as part of the Aotearoa Homelessness Action Plan, with funding to provide 1,550 places per year for three years to June 2023. In response to the immediate impact of COVID-19, 600 places were brought forward to Year One (from Year Three). Support service providers started delivering the redesigned service around the country from July 2020.

See more about the Aoteaoroa Homelessness Action Plan.

Sustaining Tenancies and MAIHI

Māori are disproportionately affected by the housing crisis. Te MAIHI o te Whare Māori - Māori and Iwi Housing Innovation (MAIHI) is a framework and strategy, created Te Tūāpapa Kura Kāinga - Ministry of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in partnership with Māori, to reset the housing system so it delivers better solutions for Māori.

MAIHI’s vision is that all whānau have:

access to warm, dry and safe homes, with the security of being able to stay in them for as long as is appropriate for their circumstances
connections to the services they need to be able to sustain their housing
opportunities to fully participate in their communities.