What Trust House does

Trust House Limited is a community-owned company incorporated in New Zealand and headquartered in Masterton, Wairarapa. The company is controlled by the Masterton Community Trust (renamed from Masterton Licensing Trust in June 2016), a statutory trust established under New Zealand licensing trust legislation. Trust House was formed in 1999 when it acquired a housing portfolio from the Masterton Licensing Trust and the Kourarau hydroelectric scheme from Genesis Energy. It operates across three integrated business lines: (1) social housing, comprising approximately 478-500 rental properties in Wairarapa and Tararua plus 19 papakāinga homes, with rents set below the lower-quartile benchmarks and approximately 60% of tenants on government income-related rent subsidies; (2) hospitality, encompassing the 102-room Copthorne Solway Park hotel and resort, The Grill restaurant, The Farriers Bar & Eatery, Kuripuni Sports Bar & TAB, Pukemanu Bar & Function Centre, Jackson Street Bar, The Horseshoe Taproom, The Flax Bar, and the Post Office Hotel in Pahiatua; and (3) the Kourarau Hydroelectric Power Scheme, a 1 MW facility comprising two power stations generating approximately 3 GWh annually for around 450 homes.

The business model is unusual among consumer-facing companies: commercial profits from hospitality and housing are channeled back into the community through the Trust House Foundation, which distributes grants, charitable donations, and sponsorships to community organizations — $4.5 million to over 445 organizations in 2019-20, and more than $43 million cumulatively over the past 15 years. The company went through a major portfolio transformation from 2013 to 2018 under CEO Allan Pollard, exiting standalone bottle stores, supermarkets, and non-core assets while reducing headcount from approximately 400 to around 200. Disclosed financial performance has been strong and improving: net profit reached $5.77 million in 2018-19 (a record at the time), and the asset base stood at approximately $80 million with $54 million in equity as of 2016. Leadership transitioned through Charles Kaka (2020-2023) to current CEO John Prendergast (appointed May 2023). In June 2024, the company announced a planned $130 million investment in housing redevelopment over 5-7 years, with the first 16-house construction contract awarded to Holmes Construction in December 2025 and the sod turning ceremony for the first project at Matai Street, Lansdowne, held in January 2026.

Name

Trust House

Legal name

Trust House Limited

Website

https://trusthouse.co.nz

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Trust House is a community-owned New Zealand company that operates hospitality venues, provides affordable rental housing, and distributes community grants in the Wairarapa region, with profits reinvested locally via the Trust House Foundation.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Services and Social Housing

NAICS

Residential Property Managers (531311), Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles (525)

SIC

Real Estate Agents & Managers (For Others) (6531)

akta.pro primary industry

Affordable Housing & Community Development (Housing, Community Land Trusts) (BPAGALAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Philanthropic & Charitable Trust Services (FSAAANAI)

Keywords

• Community housing
• Social housing
• Hospitality venues
• Community grants
• Hydroelectric power

Headquarters

HQ city

Masterton

HQ country

New Zealand

HQ region

Oceania

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Community Housing: Community housing provider with approximately 478-500 rental properties in Wairarapa and Tararua. Returns net profit from housing operations (approximately $464,661 for 2019-20). Provides affordable rental accommodation to low-income individuals and families.
2. Hospitality Operations: Multi-segment bars, hotels, and restaurants including Copthorne Solway Park (102 rooms), The Grill at Solway Park, The Farriers Bar & Eatery, Kuripuni Sports Bar & TAB, Pukemanu Bar & Function Centre, and others. Revenue from accommodation, food, beverage, gaming, and TAB services.
3. Retail Liquor: Former bottle store operations (now largely sold off). Previously operated bottle stores including The Bottle O in Masterton, sold to Big Barrel Group Ltd in 2015.
4. Hydroelectric Power Generation: Kourarau hydroelectric scheme acquired from Genesis Energy in 2011. Generates electricity for approximately 450 homes. Small but consistent revenue stream from power generation.
5. Community Grants and Distributions: Trust House Foundation distributes grants back to community organizations. In 2019-20, distributed $4.5 million in grants, charitable donations and sponsorship to over 445 organizations. Foundation funded by profits from commercial operations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Trust House is a community-owned company that operates a diversified portfolio including affordable rental housing (approximately 478 properties plus 19 papakāinga homes), a hospitality network of bars, hotels, restaurants and a TAB sports bar, the Kourarau hydroelectric power scheme, and the Trust House Foundation which distributes profits back to community organizations. The company is owned by the Masterton Community Trust and reinvests commercial profits into social housing, community grants, and regional wellbeing initiatives across the Wairarapa and lower North Island of New Zealand.

Product overview

Trust House is a community-owned company operating a diversified portfolio of hospitality businesses (bars, hotels, restaurants), community housing, and renewable energy generation. The core offerings include Trust House Housing (approximately 478 rental properties and 19 managed papakāinga homes), Trust House Foundation (community grant funding), multiple hospitality venues (The Grill at Solway Park, Copthorne Solway Park hotel with 102 rooms, The Farriers Bar & Eatery, Kuripuni Sports Bar & TAB, Pukemanu Bar & Function Centre, Jackson Street Bar, The Horseshoe Taproom, The Flax Bar, Post Office Hotel), and the Kourarau Hydroelectric Power Scheme. The company operates primarily in the Wairarapa region of New Zealand with some operations extending to Tararua, Porirua, and Flaxmere.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Horseshoe Taproom: Hospitality venue operated by Trust House
• Jackson Street Bar
• The Flax Bar
• Post Office Hotel - Pahiatua
• The Grill at Solway Park
• Pukemanu Bar & Function Centre
• Kuripuni Sports Bar & TAB
• The Farriers Bar & Eatery
• Copthorne Solway Park, Wairarapa
• Kourarau Hydroelectric Power Scheme

Products and services

• Trust House Housing Social/community housing provider offering affordable rental accommodation with approximately 478 rental properties across Wairarapa and Tararua plus 19 papakāinga homes managed. Rents set below MBIE lower quartile benchmarks, with around 60% of tenants on the government Income Related Rent subsidy.
• Trust House Foundation

Quantifiable outcome

• Distributes $4.5 million annually to over 445 community organizations
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered moderate, minor and core.

• Tauranga City Council / Nga Potiki a Tamapahore Trust / Nga Hapu o Ngati Ranginui Settlement TrustmoderateStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 October 2015Social housing agreement between Tauranga and Masterton. Trust House shares expertise with iwi trusts in Tauranga for social housing development and management.
• Police Managers' Guild TrustminorOthersCommunity education initiative through annual Police Managers' Guild Trust Journals and website resource, plus strategic alliances with business community.
• Carter Court (Dementia Facility)minorOthersTrust House provided $50,000 grant toward new 12-bed dementia facility at Carter Court in Greytown. Project total cost $358,000.
• Destination WairarapacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor beneficiary of Trust House Foundation grants ($235,000 annually, approximately one-third of operating budget). Trust House backing helps drive regional tourism worth $149 million annually.
• Big Barrel Group LtdminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPurchased The Bottle O bottle store from Trust House in 2015. Family-owned business with 27 bottle stores in lower North Island.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Others

• Foodstuffs North Island: New Zealand cooperative grocery retailer owned by retail shareholders, operating New World, PAK'nSAVE, and Four Square. Trust House divested its supermarket and bottle store assets to similar commercial operators between 2013-2017, and Foodstuffs represents the kind of national-scale cooperative competitor that has shaped the Wairarapa retail market.
• Wellington City Mission: Wellington-based community organization providing social services including housing support and social enterprise programs. Comparable in social mission and community funding distribution approach to the Trust House Foundation, though different in direct service delivery vs. grant-making model.

Direct peers

• Accessible Properties: New Zealand community housing provider managing rental homes for vulnerable populations. Operates a comparable community-housing mission and asset management model to Trust House Housing, though with a broader national footprint.
• LinkPeople: Wellington-based community housing provider offering affordable rental housing and support services. Operates in adjacent lower North Island markets to Trust House and serves a similar low-income tenant base, often working with government income-related rent subsidies.
• Ritchies Transport Holdings: New Zealand's largest community-owned bus company, owned by a charitable trust with profits reinvested in services rather than distributed to shareholders. Closest comparable to Trust House in the community-ownership structure and mission-driven reinvestment model, though in a different industry.
• Community Housing Group: New Zealand community housing provider offering affordable rental housing for low-income individuals and families. Direct peer to Trust House Housing in business model, customer base, and operating geography across the lower North Island.

Regional players

• Scenic Hotel Group: New Zealand-owned hotel chain with regional properties throughout the country, including in the Wairarapa area. Operates in the same regional accommodation market as Trust House's Copthorne Solway Park, with comparable business and leisure traveler segments.
• Heritage Hotels: New Zealand-owned hotel chain operating multiple properties across regional New Zealand. Most direct comparable to Trust House's Copthorne Solway Park 102-room hotel in the regional accommodation segment, with similar target customers (corporate, leisure, conferences) and operating model.

Broad incumbents

• Genesis Energy: New Zealand state-owned energy generator and retailer. Trust House acquired the Kourarau hydroelectric scheme from Genesis Energy in 2011; the two operate in the same hydroelectric generation sector, though at vastly different scales.
• Meridian Energy: New Zealand's largest renewable energy generator, predominantly hydroelectric. Operates in the same generation sector as Trust House's Kourarau 1MW scheme, and shares exposure to NZ wholesale electricity market dynamics and renewable energy policy.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/TrustHouseNZ

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Trust House