May 20, 2013
House plans fall short for majority
The Mana Party says the Government’s prescription for housing will do nothing to get the bulk of New Zealanders into their own homes.
Last week’s budget included special housing zones where the government can override council consent processes to allow housing development, and allowing the Reserve Bank to try to address the looming house price bubble.
Mana Vice-President and Auckland mayoral candidate John Minto says the measures on housing affordability seem to be aimed at people or above the median wage, rather than ordinary working New Zealanders.
"We’ve got a third of the country that can't afford a mortgage or rentals in the market at the moment. People are paying more than 30 percent of their income on rent or mortgages so we've got this housing inaffordabilty for the people who need it the most. The houses that will be created, and there will be houses created, are not for the people who need it the most," he says.
The budget also included a review system that will push higher-earning Housing New Zealand tenants into the private market, and money to subsidise rent charged by community house providers such as the Salvation Army.
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