KiwiSaver and purchasing a home

You may withdraw your own and your employer’s contributions and any investment earnings in the Scheme (the withdrawal may not include any Government contributions for your benefit i.e. $1,000 kickstart contribution and Member Tax Credits).

No. The home or land to be purchased must be intended to be your principal place of residence.

You can use the money to purchase a freehold, leasehold or stratum estate (often related to units or apartments).

Any withdrawal made under the home purchase withdrawal facility is paid to your solicitor to enable completion of the purchase of the property.

As a member of the Westpac KiwiSaver Scheme wanting to withdraw your money, you will need to complete the Westpac KiwiSaver Home Purchase Withdrawal Form.

The trustee of the Westpac KiwiSaver Scheme will require the following from your solicitor, before the payment of the withdrawal:

a) a copy of an agreement for the sale and purchase of an estate in land under which you are a purchaser; and

b) a pre-printed bank deposit slip for your solicitor’s trust account; and

c) an undertaking to the effect that the agreement has gone unconditional; and

d) an undertaking that the funds will be paid to the vendor as part of the purchase price (or, if the sale does not settle, repaid in full to the trustee of the Westpac KiwiSaver Scheme for crediting to your accounts).

If the settlement is not completed by the due date (or any agreed extended date), the funds must be repaid by your solicitor to the trustee of the Westpac KiwiSaver Scheme for crediting to your accounts.

In this instance, we recommend that you consult your legal adviser to determine your eligibility to make a home purchase withdrawal. Though the general rule is that (unless you qualify as a “second chance” home buyer) you must never previously have owned a house or land, limited exceptions apply where you have only ever owned (or co-owned) land as a trustee.

The Housing New Zealand website (www.hnzc.govt.nz) advises (as at 1 July 2010) that to be eligible for the home purchase subsidy, you must:

• be 18 years or over
• have not received a home purchase subsidy before
• be buying your first home, unless Housing New Zealand determines that you qualify as a second chance home buyer
• be planning to live in the house.
• be a member of a KiwiSaver scheme (or a complying scheme or an exempt employer scheme)
• have contributed at least the minimum percentage of your income to a KiwiSaver scheme, complying scheme or exempt employer scheme for at least three years (does not need to be consecutive). From 1 July 2007 to 31 March 2009 the minimum contribution was 4 percent of income. From 1 April 2009, the minimum contribution was reduced to 2 percent
• meet income and regional house price caps (for more information see the Housing New Zealand website)
• be buying one of the following types of property and land arrangements:
  • Fee Simple
  • Stratum estate (freehold and leasehold)
  • Cross lease (freehold and leasehold)
  • Leasehold
• be resident in New Zealand.

Additional criteria will apply if you are buying land and planning to build a house on it, or buying an apartment that is being built.

As the home purchase subsidy facility is administered by Housing New Zealand, please visit the Housing New Zealand website www.hnzc.govt.nz for more information or contact your legal adviser.

The application form for the home purchase subsidy can be downloaded from the Housing New Zealand website. You will need to complete the form and return it with the required documents (listed in the application form) to Housing New Zealand.