Invest in New Zealand, support social impact
CHFA is New Zealand’s specialist lender for community and affordable housing providers.
With an A+ credit rating from S&P Global Ratings and access to a Crown Standby Facility of up to $150 million, CHFA provides investors with the opportunity to acquire social bonds that are invested domestically, to support community and affordable housing providers.
All CHFA social bonds are issued under our Social Finance Framework which is independently validated by S&P Global Ratings through its Second Party Opinion.
CHFA finances community and affordable housing providers nationwide, helping to address New Zealand’s affordable housing shortage by reducing borrowing costs and enabling delivery of more warm, dry, affordable homes.
We work with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, which provides a range of funding and grants to the community and affordable housing sector. Many of the organisations that receive these grants, or long-term government funding, then come to CHFA for finance.
What we do: CHFA pools the financing needs of leading community and affordable housing providers and issues social bonds through our dedicated programme. With CHFA’s efficient model and lower operating margins, trusted partnerships and Crown support, we reduce the cost of borrowing.
A logical approach to delivering efficient finance: Similar models have been proven internationally. In New Zealand, the Local Government Funding Agency (LGFA) applies the same aggregation approach for local government, and in Australia, Housing Australia successfully operates the Affordable Housing Bond Aggregator. Both have been proven to lower the cost of finance for borrowers, while attracting investors at scale.
Demonstrated results: Since 2019, CHFA and its manager, Community Finance, have facilitated over $350 million in lending, supporting community and affordable housing providers nationwide. CHFA and Community Finance are the leading dedicated lender to the community and affordable housing sector in New Zealand.
Partnering with Government: The Ministry of Housing and Urban Development provides long-term funding and capital grants to the sector. CHFA’s efficient finance helps to amplify the impact of this investment through efficient finance – supporting delivery at scale and improving outcomes for taxpayers.
The Crown also directly supports CHFA by providing a Crown Standby Facility of up to $150 million.
Investing with CHFA
CHFA has an A+ rating through S&P Global Ratings. Its social bond programme provides New Zealand’s wholesale debt markets a way to invest locally in affordable housing, at scale.
This provides investors with an opportunity to invest and contribute to positive social impact, while supporting the growth of New Zealand’s social infrastructure.
Credit rating
CHFA is rated an A+ (domestic long term) by S&P Global Ratings.
The rating has a stable outlook.
For further information, please see our Investor Information section, which includes the Rating Report by S&P Global Ratings.
How your investment works
CHFA pools investor funds and combines them with philanthropic and bank working capital facilities, supported by a Crown Standby Facility of up to $150 million, and our dedicated social bond programme.
The proceeds are then channelled directly into loans for community and affordable housing providers.
Social bonds
CHFA issues social bonds in accordance with our Social Finance Framework, with the proceeds used to finance community and affordable housing providers. Social bonds issued by CHFA are available only to wholesale investors.
The Social Finance Framework and Second Party Opinion are available on our Investor Information page.
Government support
CHFA is supported by a Crown Standby Facility of up to $150 million, providing CHFA direct support, as we work collaboratively with the government to help more efficiently meet financing needs across the affordable housing sector.
CHFA also works collaboratively with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development.
“The Government is moving to level the playing field between Kāinga Ora and CHPs by establishing Crown lending facilities of up to $150 million for the Community Housing Funding Agency… This will lay the foundation for CHFA to borrow hundreds of millions or billions of dollars, supporting not just the delivery of social housing, but also CHPs’ broader affordable housing portfolios.”
Hon Chris Bishop, Minister of Housing
Investor information
Credit Rating Report
Social Finance Framework
Second Party Opinion
CHFA Information Memorandum
Security Trust and Intercreditor Deed
Master Trust Deed