Apenisa Kuruiwaca, 31, and his wife Paulini have often dreamt of having a house of their own.

It has been this way since they got married five years ago.

What was once a long-term goal was swiftly realised thanks to the Bainimarama-Government’s First Home Grant assistance under the Ministry of Housing and Community Development.

The couple has had to spend thousands of dollars in house rent expenses for the past five years and according to Mr Kuruiwaca, the journey was no easy feat.

All that changed in October when the couple moved into their new home in Muanikoso, where they celebrated their first Christmas in the new home.

Mr Kuruiwaca was also able to celebrate his wife’s birthday at their new home for the first time last Wednesday.

“This has been a dream come true for us,” Mr Kuruiwaca said.

“We applied for the grant in 2020.”

Our application was successful; we moved into our new home and we have already finished with the first phase of renovation works.

“We have always dreamed and planned of owning a home and when this home grant assistance came we knew this was our opportunity to tap into.”

“Through the $15,000 First Home Grant we received, we managed to make a $15,000 down payment for the $70,000 we have to pay off for the house.”

He said if it wasn’t for the First Home Grant, their expenses would be a little tight because rent expenses had always made it difficult for them to save money.

Mr Kuruiwaca, who has lived his life on the island of Beqa, is now a member of the logistic support unit of the Republic of Fiji Military Forces.

His wife is an officer with the Fiji Corrections Service.

“We started renting out in Makoi in 2015, our flat in Nabua cost us $350 a month then a house in Nadawa we were paying $550 for two years,” he said.

“The satisfaction of having a home for yourself is a feeling that I cannot explain. The grant has been an assistance that has really helped us a lot.”

His message to young couples was to take advantage of the opportunities provided by the Government that can help them realise their dreams of owning a home.

“The application process is not really that difficult, all you need to do is tap onto the opportunities available and you can be assisted,” he said.

“I thank the Government for this initiative that has really benefited us in a big way.”

According to the Ministry of Housing and Community Development, close to 200 applicants have benefited from the first home grant assistance this year

The ministry in a statement stated that a total of 120 applicants received grant assistance in excess of $3million to construct their first homes and another 72 are purchasing their first homes with grant assistance of $890,000.

“Though we have paid out the total budget of $4million allocated for this year, the programme is still open for applications as we work closely to seek extra funding to assist new applications.”

Feedback: inoke.rabonu@fijisun.com.fj