Rental figures for March 2023 show rents for apartments and one to two-bedroom homes are soaring.

The median weekly rent for apartments is up 8 percent year-on-year while small houses (1-2 bedrooms) jumped 4 percent to $520 a week - both record highs.

Trade Me Property Sales Director Gavin Lloyd said several factors are driving the popularity of smaller homes including the cost of living crisis and fewer people having children. Read more

The hall will be demolished to help meet the rising demand for accommodation in Dunedin.

Wallace said he was in talks with Habitat for Humanity to build housing for those in need on the site of St Martin's Hall in Northumberland St.

Much of the old hall — parts of which were considered unsafe in an earthquake — has been empty since 2013. The rest was vacated last year.

Wallace said plans for the housing are still being finalised. At this stage, the idea is to develop a cluster of one and two bedroom residential units.

Just when the work will start has yet to be confirmed.

Consent to demolish the old hall was not required, as it was not a listed heritage building, but consent for new houses would be, Wallace said.

‘‘We haven't signed anything with Habitat but we're working with them about the possibilities there."

‘‘We're not rushing into anything, but we're really happy that the site that was used by the community so well for decades and decades, but is not able to continue being used in that way, has the possibility of serving the community in a whole other way.''

Once built, the houses would add to those the parish already owned, in Cumberland St next to the All Saint's Anglican Church.

Four units in Cumberland Street built by parish are now offered to those in need, in partnership with the Salvation Army.

Source

• Otago Daily Times
• Image: Otago Daily Times