Now, after six months of hard work renovating a three-bedroom house in Brockville, Chris and Shari Roy and their two children, Riana (16) and Whakatau (12), have moved into their new home.
Mr Roy said before being chosen by Habitat for Humanity they had always dreamed of buying their own home, but after their painting business went bankrupt they all but surrendered themselves to a life of renting.
"We were out of the ball game," he said.
Mrs Roy said they first heard the charity was looking for families to work on a new house from a friend, and after applying late last year they got an "early Christmas present" in the form of a call saying they had been chosen for Habitat for Humanity's latest project.
The couple, along with friends and family, had put more than 400 hours' work into the project, which included installing insulation, painting, putting in a fireplace and landscaping work, Mr Roy taking advantage of his experience as a painter and a gib stopper.
Mrs Roy said the family was proud of their new home and wanted to thank Habitat for Humanity, along with friends and family who had lent a hand for making their "dream come true".
"It's the only way we would have been able to own our own home."
The children were also loving the new house and were "very proud of their new rooms" after helping choose the colour of the walls.
Mr Roy said they both enjoyed having the freedom that came with home ownership.
Habitat for Humanity Dunedin deputy chairman Mike Barnsley said the decision to renovate rather than starting from scratch helped save money and the charity was considering buying and renovating an older house for its next project as well.
This was a shift from previous projects, most of which had been new houses.
Habitat for Humanity is a global not-for-profit organisation which helps families in need move into their own homes.
The Dunedin branch was established in 1995.
