Opposition trashes housing crisis response

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Housing crisis response trashed

3News NZ

Mr English says it will be two to three years before the processes change

Mr English says it will be two to three years before the processes change

People who can't afford to buy homes won't be helped by the government's response to the housing crisis, opposition parties say.

Finance Minister Bill English on Monday unveiled proposals aimed at increasing the supply of less expensive houses, but Labour and the Greens aren't impressed.

"The Kiwi dream of home ownership is dying," Labour's housing spokeswoman Annette King said.

"National's response to the affordability crisis won't give Kiwis the relief they deserve... it's a combination of `considering new ways, undertaking more inquiries and undertaking more evaluations'."

The Green's Holly Walker says creating new suburbs far from city centres won't make houses more affordable.

"Research shows the infrastructure and transport costs of building beyond city limits are more than twice as high as building within existing urban areas," she said.

"The 'saving' of building on cheap rural land is more than wiped out by long-term costs."

The main proposals are:

  • Increasing land supply, especially in Auckland, while also allowing inner-city development;
  • Reducing delays and making councils approve plans within six months;
  • Speeding up infrastructure development;
  • Increasing construction sector productivity by 20 per cent by 2020.

Mr English says it will be two to three years before the processes change, and he wants councils to buy into it.

If they don't play their part, the Government's last resort will be passing laws to make them.

Meanwhile, Labour is considering removing restrictions on KiwiSavers who want to withdraw money to buy a first home.

Annette King says the party is looking to help first home-buyers by removing income and house price caps on KiwiSaver withdrawals.

First home buyers currently must have been enrolled in KiwiSaver for at least three years to apply for a first-home withdrawal.

NZN / RadioLIVE

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Comments

31/10/2012 7:16:42 a.m.

David wrote:

70% of new homes are built by people who wil;l never live in them are 100 square metres too big. Speculation properties are instantly overpriced by $50 000, the amount of the profit the greedy SOBs demand. A Capital gains tax will fix this problem.

30/10/2012 10:54:54 p.m.

Kitty wrote:

New Zealanders coming home from Australia are now able to or soon will be, to transfer their Australian Super to Kiwisaver, but they have different rules and are unable to withdraw their money to purchase a house. What a great incentive for some of these people it would be if they could use that money to put a deposit on a house.

30/10/2012 4:14:57 p.m.

interesting wrote:

kiwisaver is supposed to be for retirement??? Kiwis dont wont apartments well they will just have to get used to them if they want cheap housing otherwise the truth is in NZ and Oz unless you are lucky,work hard have a working couple buying a home is pretty much a thing of the past especially if you have high wants on size,location etc.

30/10/2012 4:12:53 p.m.

Carlos wrote:

The real purpose of releasing more land is for the benefit of land developers, they will make a killing. I imagine there are some developers with close contacts to English and Co?

30/10/2012 4:02:26 p.m.

please people wrote:

Kiwi-Saver is supposed to be for retirement, what a crock with people drawing it out early. Owning a home has never been easy and is something that in reality not all people can achieve here or in Australia etc. Why on earth do people think it is a god-given right/need to own a home?? the whole world is different so why dont Kiwis wake up to the reality of the huge sacrifices that have to be made to own a home or just rent??

30/10/2012 3:09:32 p.m.

Marty wrote:

Labour whinges at everything with no solutions. At least the National solution is getting down to the issue on new housing. Over priced land. As for existing properties they have been extremely overinflated and there is no solution. Increased wages in a country this size with the inherent greed. Never so Bulgar sorry no hope. Boom yep its dead. Sam, apartments, the kiwi dream is not to be stacked on top of each other and sharing walls with the neighbor.

30/10/2012 2:33:39 p.m.

YoshioUsui wrote:

Democracy Tax
American economy is in a serious condition. The only way to pull the economy out of recession is to analyze the real cause of recession and take measures against it
The cause of the recession and unemployment lies in the Communist China.
Democracy costs too much, and the costs of democracy such as the election , division of the three powers,
and management of parliament are added on all products from toothbrushes to cars.
There are no such extra costs for the products of dictatorial nations.
When a dictatorial nation constructs the road, all they have to do is sign the documents by top leaders
of the communist party, and then lay down asphalt after excluding citizens from the government land.
It is wrong from beginning to generate price competition on the same level, and there is no way to win the price competition against the products of dictatorial nations.
The unfairness of trade is the real cause of the recession.
It is pointless to do fiscal stimulus if they do not resolve the true cause of the recession.
One way to pull the economy out of recession.
That is to eliminate the unfairness of trade and currency exchange.
We need to impose tax equivalent to the costs of democracy on all products imported from nondemocratic nations.
This tax referred to as Democracy Tax.
Democracy Tax will not imposed on the products from Swiss or New Zealand.
They already pay the cost of democracy.
However there are Nations in the wide world that don’t pay the costs of Democracy.
For all products from nondemocratic nations we should have them pay Democracy Tax to democratic nations, because price competition has to be fair.
America and the world should introduce Democracy Tax immediately.
It requires prompt action for democratic nations in the world to unite and introduce Democracy Tax.
Otherwise, democracy, which our predecessors have protected with their lives, will collapse.

30/10/2012 11:55:13 a.m.

sam wrote:

We need apartments apartments apartments!!!!!

30/10/2012 11:08:58 a.m.

boom wrote:

"The Kiwi dream of home ownership is dying," Labour's housing spokeswoman Annette King said. Earth to labour and national, earth to labour and national, for average kiwi the dream is dead and has been for about 10 yrs...earth to labour and national...do you copy..over.



30/10/2012 10:41:42 a.m.

Bulgar wrote:

None of their proposed solutions will solve the problem of the average NZer being too poorly paid to afford what was affordable in the past.