6,400 more public housing places for New Zealanders by 2022

The Government is today announcing locations around New Zealand for 6,400 new public housing places being built over the next four years which were funded as part of Budget 2018.

Housing and Urban Development Minister Phil Twyford has released the 2018 Public Housing Plan which outlines the number and size of the homes which will be part of the biggest public housing programme in more than a decade.

The plan will see 3,550 new public housing places being made available in Auckland with thousands of much-needed new state houses in regions around New Zealand. This has been fully funded through a combination of:

• $234.4 million in operating funding from Budget 2018,

• $2.9 billion of Housing New Zealand borrowing from third parties, with a further $900 million from its operations.

Phil Twyford said the national housing crisis had hurt too many New Zealanders: “From those locked out of the Kiwi dream of home ownership, to those left homeless and those suffering the health effects of poor quality housing.

“The single most important thing the Government can do to solve the housing crisis is to build more affordable homes, and the best way to tackle homelessness is to build more public housing.

“Nationwide, there are currently 67,228 public housing places, giving families and individuals warm, dry, and safe homes, for as long as they need it.

“Public housing is an essential part of helping families and vulnerable people with one of their most basic needs, housing. The waiting list for a state house – now at 8704 – shows the extent of the suffering in our communities.” Phil Twyford said.

Over the next four years the Ministry of Social Development will work with Housing New Zealand and community housing providers to build as many additional public housing places as possible, within available funding – this may mean that the number of additional public housing places built by 2022 is more than 6,400.

“It will take bold action to fix the housing crisis created over the past decade and the Public Housing Plan is another step in the right direction. Demand for housing changes all the time, and we’ll constantly monitor what’s needed across the country and will continue to invest in places where New Zealanders need public housing the most.” said Phil Twyford.

Regional breakdown

*all numbers are as at 30 June 2018

*all numbers are as at 30 June 2018

*all numbers are as at 30 June 2018

** Note that the pipeline and the number of additional places still being sought in the Public Housing Plan for Waikato totals 340, not 330. This is because the number of places in the pipeline in Hamilton exceeds the number of places we are seeking by 10 places – we have not reduced the number of places being sought in the other TAs to compensate for this. We will ensure at least 330 additional public housing places are delivered in Waikato by 2022, within available funding.

*all numbers are as at 30 June 2018

**Note that the pipeline and the number of additional places still being sought in the Public Housing Plan for Bay of Plenty totals 330, not 275. This is because the number of places in the pipeline in Tauranga exceeds the number of places we are seeking by 55 places – we have not reduced the number of places being sought in the other TAs to compensate for this. We will ensure at least 275 additional public housing places are delivered in Bay of Plenty by 2022, within available funding.

*all numbers are as at 30 June 2018

*all numbers are as at 30 June 2018

*all numbers are as at 30 June 2018

*all numbers are as at 30 June 2018

**Note that the pipeline and the number of additional places still being sought in the Public Housing Plan for Wellington totals 706, not 715. This is because the HNZ and CHP pipeline for Wellington City, Upper Hutt, Lower Hutt and Porirua totals 601 (9 short of our ambitions to bring on 610 additional places across these locations). HNZ’s pipeline of 550 places across these locations is not broken down by location – we know 550 places will be delivered across Wellington City, Upper Hutt, Lower Hutt and Porirua, but the breakdown of this number across these locations is still to be confirmed. We will ensure at least 715 additional public housing places are delivered in Wellington by 2022, within available funding.

*all numbers are as at 30 June 2018

*all numbers are as at 30 June 2018

**Note that the pipeline and the number of additional places still being sought in the Public Housing Plan for Canterbury totals 929, not 480. This is because the number of places in the pipeline in Christchurch City exceeds the number of places we are seeking by more than 400 places – we have not reduced the number of places being sought in the other TAs to compensate for this. We will ensure at least 480 additional public housing places are delivered in Canterbury by 2022, within available funding.

*all numbers are as at 30 June 2018

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