Aida

An example of Dwell realising our vision of well-housed communities where people live well and do well.
Aida has lived in her modern and newly built Dwell home with her four children since 2015. The family’s previous Housing NZ home was old, cold and damp.

Aida’s* eldest son and daughter suffered with eczema and asthma, conditions which their doctor advised were being exacerbated due to the property they were living in. Due to this diagnosis, they were accepted onto the MSD Housing list for a transfer to another Housing NZ property or to be considered for a property with a community housing provider.

“My children were very sick in our old property. I struggled to sleep as I was kept awake by my daughter who spent most nights up itching due to her eczema. This was despite us using creams every day at regular intervals. This affected our quality of life as we were tired all the time.” Aida was matched to a Dwell property through the social housing register with MSD. The properties are double-glazed throughout, insulated, and built to a modern standard.

“When I first saw the property, I was very excited and happy that I could be considered for such a lovely home. I had been waiting for warmer, drier house for some time and had even looked into renting on the private market, but this was unaffordable. I had also considered moving to Auckland to access a warmer climate, but friends and family were based around the Wellington area, I didn’t want to lose these people.”

Aida and her family moved into their home in February 2015, close to friends that live in a council property in Brooklyn and they support each other. Aida’s children moved to a school nearby, enabling them to meet and befriend other children in the neighbourhood.

“My children have settled well in their new school and have made many friends. They are also friends with other children in the neighbourhood.”

“I like living in Brooklyn – it is a very welcoming community. The nearby community centre invites us to the events they hold, and the children are able to use their green spaces to play.”

After they moved into their new home, the children’s health improved dramatically and Aida is very happy in her home. She enjoys the calm and quiet neighbourhood which she says is a good area to bring up her children in. She also likes living in a modern house which is easy to keep warm.

*name has been changed for privacy reasons