An innovative new "rent-to-buy'' scheme is being used at the Olivebank Townhouses to help several first-time buyers to afford to purchase their homes.

It was designed by Mr. Kitson to help out young couples who cannot afford to buy a home immediately.

The scheme provides that up to $13,000 of an occupier's rent is put towards a down-payment on buying their property.

In the first year, half of an occupier's rent is put aside, and, in the second year, a quarter goes the same way.

At the end of the two years, the occupier has an option to buy their unit for $13,000 off the asking price. If they decide not to take up the option, they lose the money that has been put aside for them.

Mr. Kitson said he came up with the scheme because of the depressed state of the market.

"Only a few months after we began work on the project, Iraq invaded Kuwait,'' he said. "Then we had the recession and things went from bad to worse.

"If you owe the bank some millions of dollars and have a recession around then you had better think of something fast -- so I came up with this.'' Money is so tight at the moment that only 15 houses have been sold, including six of the seven three-bedroom properties.

"The original intention was to sell all of the houses by the time the project was complete,'' said Mr. Kitson.

"We would have accomplished that but for the Gulf War and the recession. At the beginning we had more than enough deposits of good faith from people wanting to move in.

"But people suddenly stopped buying houses and adopted a much more cautious posture.

"This rent-to-buy plan is a good solution to the problem. It's been very successful.'' When the plan was introduced in December, 1991, 24 of the townhouses were still unoccupied. Six months later, there are just two empty properties.

"A lot of these couples who're renting to buy are either married or about to get married.

"We are looking for couples who have good jobs and a good income but not a lot of savings. For people like this, the scheme is a God-send.

"Without such a plan, they would simply not be able to afford to buy their own home. It gives me great pleasure and I'm very proud to be able to offer them the chance to do so.'' AWAY FROM THE RUSH -- Tucked neatly away behind Warwick Pond, Olivebank in Warwick is a peaceful new community protected from the hustle and bustle of nearby Middle Road by 16 acres of surrounding greenery. It is close to beaches, the Belmont golf course is nearby and, as these photographs clearly show, Olivebank offers a nice quiet place to unwind after a hard day's work.