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In Northland’s tight and overloaded public housing system, even the sickest can fall through the cracks.

Zaine Logan was one of those people.

The 61-year-old, who has a chronic and degenerative lung disease, spent months living in unsafe, cold, and damp conditions while waiting for a public housing placement.

He believes the conditions seriously worsened his health, leading to repeated Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admissions and five helicopter transfers this year alone.

Ministry of Social Development (MSD) and Kāinga Ora said Logan had previously been offered housing, but delays occurred after they were unable to contact him.

Logan, who is steroid-dependent and lives with only one functioning lung, said his doctors gave him a two-year life expectancy.

“But that’s what they’re giving me,” he said. “I know I’m going to live longer than that. That’s my plan.”

He’s now finally been placed in a warm, dry Kāinga Ora home in Kaitāia.

“I was pushing and pushing because the way I was living, with my health condition, was why I kept ending up in hospital,” he said.

Kaitaia resident Zaine Logan is happy in his new home after a long wait. Photo / Yolisa Tswanya

Logan says the stress of his housing situation was overwhelming. For a time, he lived with a cousin in a location that ambulances struggled to access.

“Where I lived with my cousin wasn’t the best, it was hard for the ambulance to access me and I was always under a bit of stress because I knew how long it would take the ambulance to get there. It was a scary way to live. I was always wondering, ‘am I going to die tomorrow?’.”

After one of his more recent hospitalisations, he said a doctor refused to discharge him until he had a place to stay.

Now, as he slowly moves his belongings into his new place, Logan said it’s starting to feel like a home.

“It’s warm, it’s peaceful, and that’s all I ever wanted from the start. I’m just happy that I’ve got somewhere of my own.”

He said he was grateful his doctors wrote a letter and believed that was the push that led him to having his home.

Graham MacPherson, MSD regional commissioner for Northland, said the supply of public housing was very tight and there was a shortage of affordable housing across the country.

“At any given time, we have many people, often with high needs and complex situations, looking for housing. How quickly they are housed depends both on their need and what is available that matches that need.”

MacPherson said Logan was placed on the Housing Register on December 23, 2024 with a priority rating of A19 – which reflected his high level of need.

“At that same appointment we provided Zaine with financial support to stay in accommodation in Kaitāia.

“In March 2025 we attempted to contact Zaine about his Social Housing Application, but we were unable to reach him. As a result, his application was put on hold.”

He added that in early June 2025 Logan approached them again requesting help with housing as his circumstances had changed.

“We offered to refer him to Transitional Housing but he declined and elected to stay with a friend.”

Logan said he declined the transitional housing accommodation as he was not happy with the conditions of the place offered, opting to stay with his cousin instead.

On June 24 he was offered a social housing property with Kāinga Ora.

Kāinga Ora is responsible for matching people to available housing.

Jeff Murray, regional director, Northland, said Logan was matched with a home in January this year and came back to their attention in June.

“Zaine’s application came to our attention again in early June. Soon after, a home became available in Kaitāia that Zaine was matched to. We were able to contact Zaine, and he was offered the home as per our usual processes.”