The Cumnock and District Progress Association is offering four houses around the village to families prepared to move to the area, renovate the houses and contribute to the community.

It sounds like a tall ask but at $1 per week rent, it’s a hard offer to turn your back on.

“First and foremost we want children in the school,” Progress Association member Christine Weston said.

“My boys started school this year and I noticed the numbers had come down quite a lot in the last 20 years and I thought we needed to do something before the school closed.”

Inspired by a similar story on Channel Nine’s A Current Affair, Ms Weston found several farm houses in the district in need of repair and convinced the owners to offer them up for $1 per week’s rent to any family willing to relocate to Cumnock with their school-aged children.

Channel Nine also reported on Ms Weston’s project which has led to thousands of visits to the website set up by the Progress Association.

The criteria were the families had to have children for the school, they had to be ready for a tree change, and they had to be skilled workers and ready to contribute to the community.

They also had to have some experience with renovations as all of the houses need varying levels of work.

Annabel Gavin is one of the property owners offering up a slightly run-down farmhouse.

“It’s one of those situations where everybody wins,” Ms Gavin said.

“The farmers get their houses fixed up, it brings new people to the town and it helps keep things like the school bus run operating.”

Ms Gavin has called for people around the region to donate building materials to the project to save renovation costs when the new families move in early next year.

If you would like to donate to the Cumnock and District Progress Association’s drive to keep the town alive, email ben.brennan@ruralpress.com.