About Us

Protecting the interests of buyers, owners and occupiers of New Zealand homes.

Independent information and guidance

Independent information and guidance

To educate and protect all those owning, buying and living in New Zealand homes.

Representation and advocacy

Representation and advocacy

To represent the interests of all New Zealanders in matters relating to the homes in which we live.

Promotion of wellbeing and sustainability

Promotion of wellbeing and sustainability

To build an ethical housing environment and initiate projects that deliver safe, healthy and affordable living environments.

At HOBANZ we recognise that ensuring better quality homes for the future requires a holistic approach; one that tackles the many aspects of home ownership and educates New Zealanders about best practice. We are building an ecosystem which connects individuals and organisations; enabling them to work together and create homes that are good for us, good for the environment and good for our communities.

Since our inception, we have guided and supported hundreds of owners to restore the value and quality of homes affected by weathertightness problems. We are now building on these experiences to improve consumer knowledge and protection, raise standards throughout the building industry and to develop relationships and services that will benefit all New Zealanders. 

We are independent from industry, government or private gain- giving us the unique freedom to always act in the best interest of those we represent, and work for the common good of all citizens.

Our approach

  • Provide value added services which generate surplus revenue that can be injected back into the community and the wider ecosystem.
  • Initiate and facilitate change through the creation of new frameworks that increase efficiency, reduce waste and improve standards and quality of outputs.
  • Collaborate with others to achieve our objectives based on an inclusive model.

Our values

The values that guide our behaviour are also core to the new environment we are part of creating:

  • Be compassionate: demonstrate care for those around us by being generous with our time and our listening.
  • Act with integrity: conduct our activities with integrity towards all stakeholders as it relates to independence, professionalism, transparency and ethics and also in terms of facilitating whole solutions.
  • Create positive impact: make a positive impact in the lives of New Zealanders through our actions.
  • Encourage participation: ensure active engagement of our people, members, partners and the community.
  • Engage in intelligent practice: get actively involved and make things happen in a way that will achieve the best results. 

Our story

Founded in 2007, HOBANZ (Home Owners and Buyers Association Inc.) evolved out of the experiences of its founding members and the realisation that the interests of home owners and residents are not being well served.

John Gray and Roger Levie who have experienced the ordeal of owning leaky homes have been the driving force behind this organisation since its inception. They were body corporate chairmen of their respective multi-unit complexes at the time that their homes were found to be suffering from major building defects. John and Roger each went on to manage the repair and claims processes on behalf of their owners. Once they had dusted themselves off from that experience, they set out to assist others and advocate for change in an effort to prevent the recurrence of this problem in the future.

As John’s profile grew as a spokesman for leaky home owners, so too did the number of owners approaching him for help in all sorts of unrelated areas. This highlighted the difficulties faced by New Zealanders and the immediate need for an organisation that could understand people’s concerns and represent their collective interests.

In 2006 John and Roger started Lighthouse NZ Limited to provide leaky home owners with guidance and support. At the same time they set about creating HOBANZ, a not-for-profit membership organisation focused on the education, support and protection of New Zealand’s home owners and residents.

HOBANZ was incorporated in 2007 and since then the team has worked hard to establish the relationships and infrastructure required to create a movement in the housing environment. Lighthouse NZ Limited continued to operate and provide a source of funds to assist in the establishment of HOBANZ until 2013 when it merged to become the service arm of HOBANZ as it develops into a leading social enterprise.