REINZ calls for a new KiwiBuild target to be announced

Following yesterday’s announcement from the Housing Minister, Phil Twyford, that the year one KiwiBuild target has been scrapped, the Real Estate Institute of New Zealand (REINZ) is calling for a new target to be announced.

REINZ would like to see a target put in place ahead of the next election in order to measure how the KiwiBuild programme is progressing.

Bindi Norwell, Chief Executive at REINZ says: “With a significant housing shortfall in New Zealand, the KiwiBuild programme is an extremely important and worthwhile initiative to try and address some of the supply issues we have in this country. However, we are very disappointed by the scrapping of the interim targets and the admission that the year one target is nowhere near being achieved.

“We understand the target of building 100,000 homes in 10 years hasn’t changed, but we are calling on the Minister to instead announce a new target to be achieved ahead of next year’s election. With any large project it’s essential that milestones and targets are set along the way in order to measure progress, but also to break the project down into more manageable deliverables,” continues Norwell.

The housing shortage is a fundamental issue for New Zealand and if the Government is struggling with building 1,000 houses in year one, it highlights just how difficult it is to build houses in New Zealand.

“We recognise that the supply problem is not one that can be solved overnight and it’s not an easy problem to solve. The fact that so few houses have been built since the KiwiBuild programme was announced shows just how hard it is to build houses in New Zealand and what a significant issue it is,” continues Norwell.

“A discussion with anyone who has ever built a house or undertaken significant renovations on their property quickly reveals the stress and frustration with the way the system is currently – particularly when it comes to the consenting process and cost,” she points out.

“What we need is a cross-party approach that is solutions based and an approach that is quicker, smarter and more streamlined,” concludes Norwell.

ENDS

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