Andrew Little’s speech: Backing the Kiwi dream of home ownership
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2:47 pm, July 10th, 2016 - 176 comments
Categories: Andrew Little, housing, labour, Politics -
Tags: homeless crisis
Tēnā koutou katoa
Can I begin by acknowledging Annette King.
Annette is an incredible Deputy Leader and a real source of counsel, wisdom and advice.
Can I also acknowledge the local MP David Cunliffe, and Phil Twyford our fantastic housing spokesperson.
You’ve never seen Nick Smith look so scared as when Phil gets up to ask him a question in the house.
I see mayoral candidate Phil Goff is here today. Phil I want to say how exciting it is to think what we will achieve for Auckland with you as mayor and Labour in government.
Can I also acknowledge other caucus colleagues and I want to make special mention of a soon to be colleague, even though he can’t be here today: the next MP for Mt Roskill, Michael Wood.
I had the pleasure of attending Michael’s campaign launch last month, and he has a great team that are working hard to deliver a Labour win in Mt Roskill at the end of the year.
We’re here today to celebrate 100 years of the Labour Party.
Here to celebrate generations of men and women who have come together to make this a better country.
We’re here to celebrate Labour’s creation of the welfare state, the achievements of widespread home ownership and the creation of state housing, a free health system and a free education system.
In short, we celebrate the building of a nation.
We celebrate and we remember the image of Michael Joseph Savage carrying the very first furniture into the very first state house.
Offering hope to people that the years of depression were over and there were brighter days ahead.
We’re here to celebrate the beginning of the reconciliation between Maori and Pakeha and the restoration of the mana of the Treaty of Waitangi.
We’re celebrating the decision to make New Zealand nuclear free. We celebrate the courage shown by thousands of New Zealanders who marched against the Springbok Tour.
We’re celebrating KiwiBank. Kiwisaver. Working for Families. The Cullen Fund.
We celebrate Homosexual Law Reform and we remember the scene of the packed galleries in Parliament rising in song after we passed Marriage Equality.
These are Labour achievements.
This is the legacy of our party.
A better, stronger, prouder country.
Today, we celebrate these achievements and we look to the future.
At the heart of our political philosophy, at the heart of all of our achievements, lies a profound sense of optimism.
An enduring belief in our shared power to make a difference.
A belief in our common ability to come together to solve the great challenges of the day.
The power of humanity, acting together, for the dignity of humankind.
We believe that as strongly today as our forebears did 100 years ago.
And this approach is desperately needed in New Zealand today.
Because still, after 100 years, there is so much work left to do.
Today, we have a government that has failed to tackle the big challenges facing our country; that has failed to stand up for most New Zealanders.
After eight years, this government’s lost touch.
And nowhere, nowhere, is this government more out of touch and out of ideas than on housing.
Housing is at the core of a good life.
It provides security and stability.
It helps families put down roots in their communities and save for retirement
It is one of the most common sources of capital for people setting up their own small business.
The ambition of widespread homeownership sits at the heart of our social contract. It is at the heart of the Kiwi Dream.
The promise that if you work hard and do the right thing, you can earn a place of your own.
But under this government, all of that is slipping away.
We all know New Zealand has a housing crisis.
I know it, you know it, the Reserve Bank knows it.
Everyone in Auckland knows it.
The rest of New Zealand knows it.
The only people who don’t think New Zealand has a housing crisis all just happen to work in the Beehive.
Under National, home ownership is at its lowest level in 65 years.
Since 2008, when this government came to office, the average house price in Auckland has nearly doubled.
But over the same period, incomes have increased by only 24%.
In the last year, house prices in Auckland have increased by $2600 a week.
Twenty six hundred dollars a week.
It’s crazy. How on earth do you save enough to keep up with that?
And look, behind all of these figures are real people who are missing out.
One of those people wrote to me recently, a young woman named Jen, she talked about what it was like for her and her partner trying to buy their first home.
She said “I work damn hard, so does my partner, working three jobs to try and save for a home” but she says “We were told that our 550k budget was laughable and made to feel like we could never own our own home.”
People like Jen and her partner, they deserve better.
They’re young, they’re hard working, they’re ambitious.
They’re exactly the type of people this government should be standing up for, instead of shutting them out.
But instead the government is siding with the speculators, the people trying to make big money out of our housing market at the expense of families looking for homes.
The proportion of Auckland houses being bought by investors has now reached 46% – around twice the level of first home buyers.
But it isn’t just first home buyers that are hurt by this crisis.
Even those who are lucky enough, often with the help of their parents, to scrape together enough for a deposit, are hurt by this crisis.
People who know they are winners on paper, but who could never actually sell their house because they would never be able to buy another one in this market.
People who can’t realise their equity because doing so would mean having to move far away from their jobs or their kid’s schools.
People who live in mortal fear of a bump in interest rates, because they know they could never keep up with the mortgage if rates rise by even a couple of per cent.
And then there is the hard edge of the crisis.
The rising poverty and homelessness that National turns a blind eye to.
We’ve all heard the stories of Kiwi kids admitted to hospitals with respiratory illnesses because the cold damp homes they have to live in are making them sick.
We’ve all seen the awful media reports in the last few weeks about what life is like for those who can’t find any home at all.
Of the 42,000 people living in overcrowded conditions or in garages or in cars.
Of children sleeping under bushes in South Auckland.
We’ve seen the story of the 11 year old girl, whose mother has a job, but whose family spent months living in a van before they were taken in by Te Puea Marae.
She said that the hardest part is actually not being able to read in the van, because you don’t have space. And there’s not much light because it would waste the battery.
When did this become the New Zealand we lived in?
When did we decide we wanted to make buying your first home so difficult, or living with a mortgage so tough?
When did we decide widespread poverty and homelessness was ok?
National wants us to believe this is just the way things are, that we don’t have a choice and there’s nothing we can do about it.
Well they might have given up, but I won’t. Not now, not ever.
The truth is, this Government is nowhere when it comes to housing.
They don’t have the political will to look at real solutions, so instead we’ve seen them flail from gimmick to gimmick.
Remember the plan to pay people to move away from Auckland, just a few weeks after they said they were going to pay people to move to Auckland?
Remember the announcement about emergency housing, that turned out wasn’t going to lead to a single extra bed?
And then their big key note announcement: letting a few councils borrow a bit more money for infrastructure – and then it turned out the money wasn’t enough to cover just the cost of one big pipe in Auckland.
And you know the saddest thing about these failures? They’re just from the last few weeks – it’s been eight years of this under National.
This government has completely failed on housing.
The Prime Minister doesn’t know what to do.
Not one of the three Housing Ministers know what to do.
And let me be clear:
New Zealanders don’t have time to wait and hope National will bumble their way into a solution.
After eight years, it’s very clear.
If we want to deal with the housing crisis: that lot has to go.
We’ve got to change the government.
Because the truth is it doesn’t have to be like this.
We can fix it, and together, we will.
Today, I want to lay out Labour’s comprehensive plan to fix the housing crisis.
It’s the plan we will be taking into the next election.
It’s a plan that will restore opportunity for first home buyers, give a fair shot to the next generation and solve the homelessness problem this government has ignored.
We will attack the housing crisis from every angle, starting with the devastating lack of supply.
We’ll start by urgently building enough emergency housing to support those in need.
We’re going to fix the homelessness problem that National has ignored for far too long.
This week, I announced that Labour will urgently address the shortage of emergency housing – with $60 million to provide 1400 new beds in emergency accommodation – enough for 5100 extra people a year.
With the existing support that will take the number of people helped each year to over 8,000.
But it isn’t just the homeless, we need to do more to ensure everyone has access to modern, warm, dry homes.
Yesterday I announced that Labour will reform housing New Zealand – so that instead of being run like a corporation making a profit off the most vulnerable, we can invest hundreds of millions of dollars in building thousands of new, modern, high quality state houses instead.
But we won’t stop there.
The next part of Labour’s plan is one that somehow none of the Government’s three housing Ministers seem to have been able to come up with.
There aren’t enough affordable homes, so we’re going to build more.
Now, the Government’s been really struggling with this concept, so let me say it again:
When there’s a housing crisis, you need to build more bloody homes.
That is what Labour is going to do.
That’s how we’re going to fix this crisis.
The next Labour Government will build 100,000 new affordable homes to be on sold to first home buyers.
Working with the private sector and experts in fields like prefabrication, we can build standalone homes for $500,000-$600,000 in Auckland, with apartments and town houses for less than $500,000
With the average house price in Auckland now about to hit a million dollars this is a big move in the right direction. This will stabilise prices and give people a fair shot again.
Affordable housing developments like Waimahia are already able to build 3 bedroom homes for $550,000 but imagine what we could do building at scale across Auckland.
Now, these homes won’t be palaces. But they will be modern, warm, and affordable, first homes to help people get a foot on the housing ladder.
To get these houses built, we’re also going to do more to free up land for new greenfields developments.
That’s why Labour will abolish the Auckland urban growth boundary that has been driving up the price of land.
We’ll replace it with a smarter way to manage urban growth that will shut down the land bankers and speculators by cutting off their profits.
And to make sure there we can deliver these homes, we need to be growing the construction workforce.
Earlier this year, I announced our Dole for Apprenticeships policy which will take on an extra 4000 young people for jobs training in fields including building and construction. Our policy of three-years’ free post-school education and training will add thousands of skilled workers to the workforce. KiwiBuild will also provide a pipeline of future work for the building industry as the work of the Canterbury rebuild nears completion, freeing up more workers.
100,000 houses will make a real difference to Kiwi families. It will go a long way towards helping families get into their first home.
But we can go even further. The scale of the challenge demands that we must.
Today, I want to add the next part of our plan to restore the Kiwi Dream.
Just like freeing up restrictive urban growth controls, this announcement is about cutting through the barriers that stop us building homes and letting the private sector crack on with the job.
It’s simple: The country needs more houses built, it needs them urgently, and it needs them in well-designed communities with all the services and utilities people need.
Building on that scale gets complicated. With the need for infrastructure, and dealing with different land owners, it can easily get too risky for private developers.
Just getting a change to the Council plan can take several years.
This is an urgent crisis, we can’t afford delays like that. If we want to deal with the housing crisis, we’ve got to cut through these delays and get cracking on building homes fast.
Which is why today I am announcing that Labour in government will set up an Affordable Housing Authority to deliver ambitious new urban development projects, at scale and at pace.
We are going to change the face of our towns and cities, and fix this housing crisis.
Our Affordable Housing Authority will roll up its sleeves and build like we haven’t seen in this country for a long time.
It will lead and master-plan the building of new communities and the revitalisation of old ones.
It will partner with developers to deliver thousands and thousands of high-quality affordable homes, in communities Kiwis will be proud to live in.
The Authority will have a target to meet: 50% across all of the homes in its developments will have to be affordable.
Under National, that number has been as low as 5%.
The Authority will look after the Government’s urban land holdings, and will make sure there is a pipeline of land for future needs – for housing, business, schools, parks and hospitals.
At the local level it will partner with others: the local Council, iwi and private investors to form development companies which will manage the projects.
The Affordable Housing Authority will allow us to turbo charge the scale of urban development so desperately needed in Auckland.
Imagine 10 or 15 projects on the scale of a Hobsonville or a Tamaki.
There is huge potential in greenfield areas like Drury, Whenuapai, and Kumeu while within the city there are opportunities to redevelop around the city centre and in town centres like Henderson and Manukau.
And this is not just about Auckland.
All around the country there are towns and cities who want to revitalise neighbourhoods and town centres.
With the Affordable Housing Authority on their side, they will be able to. The Authority will be able to lead redevelopment projects in places like South Dunedin and the East Frame in Christchurch.
The funny thing is, this is not a new idea. The First Labour Government planned and built ambitious new communities with parks, and community centres.
As with KiwiBuild we are drawing inspiration from the greatest generation to find solutions for the 21st century.
This approach to urban development is widely used overseas, including in Australia.
And it has been endorsed by the Productivity Commission, and the leading lights in the property industry here.
This is a common-sense, achievable way to get homes build.
It’s long overdue, it’s widely supported.
And Labour will do it.
But we can’t just fix the supply issues, we have to fix the problems with demand as well.
We urgently need to clamp down on the speculators who are driving up the prices.
I have no sympathy for speculators and land bankers who are just in the market to make a quick buck. Not when families are missing out.
So we’ll start by cracking down on the offshore speculators – the people who don’t live here, don’t want to live here, whose only interest in New Zealand is to extract profits.
We’ll ban offshore buyers from the market unless they are willing to build a new home and add to the stock.
It’s a common sense idea, supported by a big majority of New Zealanders, and it’s been staring the government in the face for years.
But there’s more we need to do.
Right now, there’s no doubt that the way our tax system is designed gives speculators enormous incentives to wreak havoc in our housing market, allowing them to reap super profits practically tax free.
The government has a piecemeal response to this – a bright line test of just two years that means as long as a speculator holds on to a property for two years and one day, they can flick it on without paying any tax on the profit.
That’s not good enough in the midst of a housing crisis.
What’s more, our rules around negative gearing encourage speculation as well.
The way this works is investors are able to write off any losses they make in property investment against the rest of their income for tax purposes.
That means other taxpayers pick up the tab – its effectively a taxpayer subsidy for speculation.
If homeowners cannot claim their mortgage payments against their taxes why should speculators?
Taken together, these rules give a boost to the speculators, and gives them an unfair advantage over first home buyers.
That’s not right, and it can’t continue.
In government, Labour will hold a comprehensive review of our tax system, to restore fairness and balance between the productive and speculative parts of our economy.
But it has become clear to me that we can’t wait.
The crisis is urgent.
That’s why today I am announcing that the Government I lead will extend the bright line test so that if you sell an investment property within five years, you’ll pay the full tax on it.
That means the short term speculators won’t be able to get away tax free anymore. It means ending the tax incentives to speculate in short term property gains at the expense of families trying to get into a home.
But we won’t stop there.
I am announcing today that Labour will begin consulting on how to end the loop hole of negative gearing.
We’ll do this in a way that’s targeted at speculators, not investors looking for a stable, long term return.
Under Labour, the market won’t be stacked in favour of speculators anymore – we’ll back families and first home buyers. We’ll back the Kiwi Dream.
These announcements make it very clear: Labour is the party of home ownership in New Zealand today.
That’s what we stand for and that’s what my government will deliver.
For 100 years now, Labour has stood for security and opportunity for every New Zealander.
A good job. A good life for your family. Good education. Healthcare that’s there for you when you need it.
And a home you can call your own.
For generations, Labour members and supporters have made this a better, more decent, more caring country.
Today, it’s our turn to continue that mission.
Next year, New Zealanders will have a clear choice.
On the one hand a tired, out of touch government that will do nothing to solve the housing crisis.
That will deliver three more years like the last eight.
Falling home-ownership, substandard rentals.
A housing crisis with no end in sight.
Or New Zealand can choose a better way
They can choose to build affordable homes.
To cut through the red tape and get the job done.
To crack down on foreign speculators.
To bring in proper rental standards.
To stop tolerating homelessness and start giving Kiwis in need a roof over their heads.
That’s the choice in front of us next year.
And together, New Zealand, we can make the right choice.
We can choose to end the housing crisis.
We can choose to restore opportunity to our young people.
We can choose to make this a better, fairer country once again.
Together, let’s go make it happen.
Thank you.
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Health NZ warned the Government at the end of March that it was running over Budget. But the reasons it gave were very different to those offered by the Prime Minister yesterday. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon blamed the “botched merger” of the 20 District Health Boards (DHBs) to create Health ...4 days ago
- 2500-3000 more healthcare staff expected to be fired, as Shane Reti blames Labour for a budget defic...
Long ReadKey Summary: Although National increased the health budget by $1.4 billion in May, they used an old funding model to project health system costs, and never bothered to update their pre-election numbers. They were told during the Health Select Committees earlier in the year their budget amount was deficient, ...4 days ago - Might Kamala Harris be about to get a 'stardust' moment like Jacinda Ardern?
As a momentous, historic weekend in US politics unfolded, analysts and commentators grasped for precedents and comparisons to help explain the significance and power of the choice Joe Biden had made. The 46th president had swept the Democratic party’s primaries but just over 100 days from the election had chosen ...5 days ago - Solutions Interview: Steven Hail on MMT & ecological economics
TL;DR: I’m casting around for new ideas and ways of thinking about Aotearoa’s political economy to find a few solutions to our cascading and self-reinforcing housing, poverty and climate crises.Associate Professor runs an online masters degree in the economics of sustainability at Torrens University in Australia and is organising ...5 days ago
- Reported back
The Finance and Expenditure Committee has reported back on National's Local Government (Water Services Preliminary Arrangements) Bill. The bill sets up water for privatisation, and was introduced under urgency, then rammed through select committee with no time even for local councils to make a proper submission. Naturally, national's select committee ...5 days ago
- Vandrad the Viking, Christopher Coombes, and Literary Archaeology
Some years ago, I bought a book at Dunedin’s Regent Booksale for $1.50. As one does. Vandrad the Viking (1898), by J. Storer Clouston, is an obscure book these days – I cannot find a proper online review – but soon it was sitting on my shelf, gathering dust alongside ...5 days ago - Gordon Campbell On The Biden Withdrawal
History is not on the side of the centre-left, when Democratic presidents fall behind in the polls and choose not to run for re-election. On both previous occasions in the past 75 years (Harry Truman in 1952, Lyndon Johnson in 1968) the Democrats proceeded to then lose the White House ...5 days ago
- Joe Biden's withdrawal puts the spotlight back on Kamala and the USA's complicated relatio...
This is a free articleCoverageThis morning, US President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the Presidential race. And that is genuinely newsworthy. Thanks for your service, President Biden, and all the best to you and yours.However, the media in New Zealand, particularly the 1News nightly bulletin, has been breathlessly covering ...5 days ago - Why we have to challenge our national fiscal assumptions
A homeless person’s camp beside a blocked-off slipped damage walkway in Freeman’s Bay: we are chasing our tail on our worsening and inter-related housing, poverty and climate crises. Photo: Photo: Lynn Grieveson / The KākāTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy ...5 days ago - Existential Crisis and Damaged Brains
What has happened to it all?Crazy, some'd sayWhere is the life that I recognise?(Gone away)But I won't cry for yesterdayThere's an ordinary worldSomehow I have to findAnd as I try to make my wayTo the ordinary worldYesterday morning began as many others - what to write about today? I began ...5 days ago - A speed limit is not a target, and yet…
This is a guest post from longtime supporter Mr Plod, whose previous contributions include a proposal that Hamilton become New Zealand’s capital city, and that we should switch which side of the road we drive on. A recent Newsroom article, “Back to school for the Govt’s new speed limit policy“, ...5 days ago
- The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Monday, July 22
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 7:00 am on Monday, July 22 are:Today’s Must Read: Father and son live in a tent, and have done for four years, in a million ...5 days ago - The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Monday, July 22
TL;DR: As of 7:00 am on Monday, July 22, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:US President Joe Biden announced via X this morning he would not stand for a second term.Multinational professional services firm ...5 days ago - 2024 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #29
A listing of 32 news and opinion articles we found interesting and shared on social media during the past week: Sun, July 14, 2024 thru Sat, July 20, 2024. Story of the week As reflected by preponderance of coverage, our Story of the Week is Project 2025. Until now traveling ...6 days ago
- I'd like to share what I did this weekend
6 days ago - For the children – Why mere sentiment can be a misleading force in our lives, and lead to unex...
National: The Party of ‘Law and Order’ IntroductionThis weekend, the Government formally kicked off one of their flagship policy programs: a military style boot camp that New Zealand has experimented with over the past 50 years. Cartoon credit: Guy BodyIt’s very popular with the National Party’s Law and Order image, ...6 days ago - A friend in uncertain times
Day one of the solo leg of my long journey home begins with my favourite sound: footfalls in an empty street. 5.00 am and it’s already light and already too warm, almost.If I can make the train that leaves Budapest later this hour I could be in Belgrade by nightfall; ...6 days ago - The Chaotic World of Male Diet Influencers
Hi,We’ll get to the horrific world of male diet influencers (AKA Beefy Boys) shortly, but first you will be glad to know that since I sent out the Webworm explaining why the assassination attempt on Donald Trump was not a false flag operation, I’ve heard from a load of people ...6 days ago - It's Starting To Look A Lot Like… Y2K
Do you remember Y2K, the threat that hung over humanity in the closing days of the twentieth century? Horror scenarios of planes falling from the sky, electronic payments failing and ATMs refusing to dispense cash. As for your VCR following instructions and recording your favourite show - forget about it.All ...1 week ago - Bernard’s Saturday Soliloquy for the week to July 20
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts being questioned by The Kākā’s Bernard Hickey.TL;DR: My top six things to note around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the week to July 20 were:1. A strategy that fails Zero Carbon Act & Paris targetsThe National-ACT-NZ First Coalition Government finally unveiled ...1 week ago - Pharmac Director, Climate Change Commissioner, Health NZ Directors – The latest to quit this m...
Summary:As New Zealand loses at least 12 leaders in the public service space of health, climate, and pharmaceuticals, this month alone, directly in response to the Government’s policies and budget choices, what lies ahead may be darker than it appears. Tui examines some of those departures and draws a long ...1 week ago - Flooding Housing Policy
The Minister of Housing’s ambition is to reduce markedly the ratio of house prices to household incomes. If his strategy works it would transform the housing market, dramatically changing the prospects of housing as an investment.Leaving aside the Minister’s metaphor of ‘flooding the market’ I do not see how the ...1 week ago - A Voyage Among the Vandals: Accepted (Again!)
As previously noted, my historical fantasy piece, set in the fifth-century Mediterranean, was accepted for a Pirate Horror anthology, only for the anthology to later fall through. But in a good bit of news, it turned out that the story could indeed be re-marketed as sword and sorcery. As of ...1 week ago - The Kākā's Chorus for Friday, July 19
An employee of tobacco company Philip Morris International demonstrates a heated tobacco device. Photo: Getty ImagesTL;DR: The top six things I’ve noted around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy on Friday, July 19 are:At a time when the Coalition Government is cutting spending on health, infrastructure, education, housing ...1 week ago - The Kākā’s Pick 'n' Mix for Friday, July 19
TL;DR: My pick of the top six links elsewhere around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day or so to 8:30 am on Friday, July 19 are:Scoop: NZ First Minister Casey Costello orders 50% cut to excise tax on heated tobacco products. The minister has ...1 week ago - Weekly Roundup 19-July-2024
Kia ora, it’s time for another Friday roundup, in which we pull together some of the links and stories that caught our eye this week. Feel free to add more in the comments! Our header image this week shows a foggy day in Auckland town, captured by Patrick Reynolds. ...1 week ago
- Weekly Climate Wrap: A market-led plan for failure
TL;DR : Here’s the top six items climate news for Aotearoa this week, as selected by Bernard Hickey and The Kākā’s climate correspondent Cathrine Dyer. A discussion recorded yesterday is in the video above and the audio of that sent onto the podcast feed.The Government released its draft Emissions Reduction ...1 week ago
- Tobacco First
Save some money, get rich and old, bring it back to Tobacco Road.Bring that dynamite and a crane, blow it up, start all over again.Roll up. Roll up. Or tailor made, if you prefer...Whether you’re selling ciggies, digging for gold, catching dolphins in your nets, or encouraging folks to flutter ...1 week ago - Trump’s Adopted Son.
Waiting In The Wings: For truly, if Trump is America’s un-assassinated Caesar, then J.D. Vance is America’s Octavian, the Republic’s youthful undertaker – and its first Emperor.DONALD TRUMP’S SELECTION of James D. Vance as his running-mate bodes ill for the American republic. A fervent supporter of Viktor Orban, the “illiberal” prime ...1 week ago - The Kākā’s Journal of Record for Friday, July 19
TL;DR: As of 6:00 am on Friday, July 19, the top six announcements, speeches, reports and research around housing, climate and poverty in Aotearoa’s political economy in the last day are:The PSA announced the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) had ruled in the PSA’s favour in its case against the Ministry ...1 week ago - The Hoon around the week to July 19
TL;DR: The podcast above of the weekly ‘hoon’ webinar for paying subscribers last night features co-hosts and talking with:The Kākā’s climate correspondent talking about the National-ACT-NZ First Government’s release of its first Emissions Reduction Plan;University of Otago Foreign Relations Professor and special guest Dr Karin von ...1 week ago
- Skeptical Science New Research for Week #29 2024
Open access notables Improving global temperature datasets to better account for non-uniform warming, Calvert, Quarterly Journal of the Royal Meteorological Society: To better account for spatial non-uniform trends in warming, a new GITD [global instrumental temperature dataset] was created that used maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) to combine the land surface ...1 week ago
- Release: Charter schools to remove the rights of teachers
A late change to charter school legislation will cheat educators out of fair pay and negotiating power proving charter schools are just a vehicle to make profit out of our education system. ...23 hours ago - Te iwi Māori will not stand for another Foreshore and Seabed
In 2004 te iwi Māori rallied against the Crown’s attempt to confiscate our coastlines and moana with the Foreshore and Seabed Act. This led to the largest hīkoi of a generation and the birth of Te Pāti Māori. 20 years later, history is repeating itself. Today the government has announced ...2 days ago
- Te Pāti Māori Acknowledge the Need for Fundamental Change in State Care
It has been five and a half years since the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care was established to investigate the abuse of children, young people, and vulnerable adults within state and faith-based institutions. Yesterday, the final report - Whanaketia through pain and trauma, from darkness to light ...2 days ago
- National disgrace for children in poverty
Shifting the goalposts on child poverty is a new low for the National-led government. ...2 days ago
- Release: National disgrace for children in poverty
Shifting the goalposts on child poverty is a new low for the National-led government. ...2 days ago
- Government quietly waters down child poverty targets
The Government’s move to dilute child poverty targets is a reminder that it is actively choosing to preserve hardship for thousands of households. ...2 days ago - Release: National jumps on Labour’s trains
National is so short on ideas it is now announcing Labour’s rail announcement from a year ago, Labour transport spokesperson Tangi Utikere said. ...2 days ago
- Release: Opposition parties unite to protect ECE
Labour, the Green Party and Te Pāti Māori are uniting to stop the Government’s dangerous changes to the Early Childhood Education sector. ...2 days ago
- Release: Another step forward for survivors of abuse in care
Labour welcomes the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care’s final report and the government committing to a formal apology in November. ...3 days ago
- Govt must listen to experiences of abuse survivors
The Government must do all it can to bring abuse in care to an end following the release of the independent inquiry. ...3 days ago
- Release: Health New Zealand exposes Minister spinning in freefall
Health New Zealand contradicted the Government’s spin that back-office bureaucracy is the cause of overspend in the public health system. ...4 days ago
- Govt must act on Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine
The Green Party is calling on the Government to take action off the back of the International Court of Justice ruling on Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. ...4 days ago
- NZ Government Must Enforce ICJ Ruling
On Friday the International Court of Justice reaffirmed what Palestinian’s have been telling us for decades: that the occupation and colonisation of Palestinian lands by Israel is illegal and must end immediately. They also called for reparations for Palestinian’s who have lived under Israeli occupation since it began in 1967. ...5 days ago
- Release: Listen PM, boot camps don’t work
Refusing to listen to evidence, experts or experience the Government is stubbornly marching ahead with its boot camps. ...7 days ago
- Release: Govt must act on ICJ ruling on illegal Israeli occupation
Labour calls on the Government to act after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian Territories is illegal. ...7 days ago
- Release: Rents up under National, promises fall flat
National Party policies which promised to put “downward pressure” on rents are having the opposite effect. ...1 week ago
- MSD figures show Govt determined to punish beneficiaries
The 53.7 percent rise in benefit sanctions over the last year is more proof of this Government’s disdain for our communities most in need of support. ...1 week ago
- We need real solutions, not more failed boot camps – Willow-Jean Prime
Aotearoa could be a country where every child grows up feeling safe, loved and with a sense of belonging in their whānau and community. But for some of our children, this is far from reality. Instead, they are trapped in a maze of intergenerational harm that they can’t escape on ...1 week ago
- David Seymour is Unfit to Serve as Minister
Te Pāti Māori are calling for David Seymour to resign as Associate Health Minister in response to his call for Pharmac to ignore the Treaty of Waitangi. “This announcement is just another example of the government’s anti-Tiriti, anti-Māori agenda.” Said Co-leader and spokesperson for health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. “Seymour thinks it ...1 week ago
- Renters suffer as soaring rents feed rising inflation
The soaring price of renting is driving the rise of inflation in this country - with latest figures from Stats NZ showing rents are up 4.8 per cent on average while annual inflation is at 3.3 per cent. ...1 week ago
- National’s climate strategy undoes good progress
National’s Emissions Reduction Plan will take New Zealand further from the economy we need to ensure the next generation has a stable climate and secure livelihoods. ...1 week ago
- Green Party releases executive summary of independent investigation
Following consultation with named parties and thorough consideration of privacy interests, the Green Party is in a position to release the Executive Summary of the final report from the independent investigation into Darleen Tana. ...1 week ago
- Government back off track on climate action
Today’s Draft Emissions Reduction Plan shows the Government couldn’t care less about a liveable climate for all. ...1 week ago
- PM needs to step in over Shane Jones’ undeclared meeting
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon should be asking serious questions of his Minister for Resources Shane Jones now it’s been revealed he misled the public about a dinner with mining companies that he didn’t declare and said wasn’t pre-arranged. ...2 weeks ago
- Te Pāti Māori Opposes Three Strikes Amendment Bill
Te Pāti Māori have submitted to the Justice Select Committee against the Sentencing (Reinstating Three Strikes) Amendment Bill. The bill will further entrench racism in our justice system and fails to focus on rehabilitation. “Reinstating Three Strikes will empower a systematically racist system and exacerbate the overrepresentation of Māori in ...2 weeks ago
- Govt Determined to Make Aotearoa a Country of Disposable Renters
The Transport and Infrastructure Committee is set to make a determination on the Residential Tenancies Amendment (RTA) Bill in the coming weeks. “This legislation will give landlords the power to kick our whānau out onto the street for no reason” said Housing spokesperson, Mariameno Kapa-Kingi. “Their solution to the housing ...2 weeks ago
- Statement on retail crime Ministerial Advisory Group
“National’s campaign was about tackling crime and the best they can do is a two-year long Ministerial Advisory Group,” Labour justice spokesperson Duncan Webb said. ...2 weeks ago
- Statement from Labour education spokesperson Jan Tinetti
“There are more examples of charter schools failing their students than there are success stories. The coalition Government is driving to dismantle our public school system and instead promote a privatised, competitive structure that puts profits before kids,” Jan Tinetti said. ...2 weeks ago
- Govt Continues to Destructively Withhold Information
“This government is choosing to deliberately mislead and withhold information, keeping our people in the dark about this government’s agenda and the future of our mokopuna,” said co-leader and spokesperson for Health, Debbie Ngarewa-Packer. The call comes after the demand from the Chief Ombudsman that Associate Minister of Health, Casey ...2 weeks ago
- Statement from Labour climate change spokesperson Megan Woods
“Today’s climate announcement by Simon Watts makes clear the National Government is simply paying lip service to meeting its climate change targets,” Megan Woods said. ...2 weeks ago
- Eight ways National is making life harder for workers
National is choosing to make life harder for workers by taking away the rights our communities have fought hard for. Here's how they’re taking workers backwards. ...3 weeks ago
- Waitlists up and workforce down under National
Health New Zealand’s recent quarterly performance report shows the public health system is going backwards under the National government. ...3 weeks ago
- Joint statement from the Prime Ministers of Canada, Australia and New Zealand
Australia, Canada and New Zealand today issued the following statement on the need for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza and the risk of expanded conflict between Hizballah and Israel. The situation in Gaza is catastrophic. The human suffering is unacceptable. It cannot continue. We remain unequivocal in our condemnation of ...17 hours ago - AG reminds institutions of legal obligations
Attorney-General Judith Collins today reminded all State and faith-based institutions of their legal obligation to preserve records relevant to the safety and wellbeing of those in its care. “The Abuse in Care Inquiry’s report has found cases where records of the most vulnerable people in State and faith‑based institutions were ...20 hours ago
- More young people learning about digital safety
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says the Government’s online safety website for children and young people has reached one million page views. “It is great to see so many young people and their families accessing the site Keep It Real Online to learn how to stay safe online, and manage ...20 hours ago
- Speech to the Conference for General Practice 2024
Tēnā tātou katoa, Ngā mihi te rangi, ngā mihi te whenua, ngā mihi ki a koutou, kia ora mai koutou. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and the invitation to speak at this 50th anniversary conference. I acknowledge all those who have gone before us and paved the ...22 hours ago
- Employers and payroll providers ready for tax changes
New Zealand’s payroll providers have successfully prepared to ensure 3.5 million individuals will, from Wednesday next week, be able to keep more of what they earn each pay, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis and Revenue Minister Simon Watts. “The Government's tax policy changes are legally effective from Wednesday. Delivering this tax ...24 hours ago
- Experimental vineyard futureproofs wine industry
An experimental vineyard which will help futureproof the wine sector has been opened in Blenheim by Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson. The covered vineyard, based at the New Zealand Wine Centre – Te Pokapū Wāina o Aotearoa, enables controlled environmental conditions. “The research that will be produced at the Experimental ...1 day ago
- Funding confirmed for regions affected by North Island Weather Events
The Coalition Government has confirmed the indicative regional breakdown of North Island Weather Event (NIWE) funding for state highway recovery projects funded through Budget 2024, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “Regions in the North Island suffered extensive and devastating damage from Cyclone Gabrielle and the 2023 Auckland Anniversary Floods, and ...1 day ago
- Indonesian Foreign Minister to visit
Indonesia’s Foreign Minister, Retno Marsudi, will visit New Zealand next week, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “Indonesia is important to New Zealand’s security and economic interests and is our closest South East Asian neighbour,” says Mr Peters, who is currently in Laos to engage with South East Asian partners. ...1 day ago
- Strengthening partnership with Ngāti Maniapoto
He aha te kai a te rangatira? He kōrero, he kōrero, he kōrero. The government has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the aspirations of Ngāti Maniapoto, Minister for Māori Development Tama Potaka says. “My thanks to Te Nehenehenui Trust – Ngāti Maniapoto for bringing their important kōrero to a ministerial ...2 days ago
- Transport Minister thanks outgoing CAA Chair
Transport Minister Simeon Brown has thanked outgoing Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority, Janice Fredric, for her service to the board.“I have received Ms Fredric’s resignation from the role of Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority,” Mr Brown says.“On behalf of the Government, I want to thank Ms Fredric for ...2 days ago
- Test for Customary Marine Title being restored
The Government is proposing legislation to overturn a Court of Appeal decision and amend the Marine and Coastal Area Act in order to restore Parliament’s test for Customary Marine Title, Treaty Negotiations Minister Paul Goldsmith says. “Section 58 required an applicant group to prove they have exclusively used and occupied ...2 days ago
- Opposition united in bad faith over ECE sector review
Regulation Minister David Seymour says that opposition parties have united in bad faith, opposing what they claim are ‘dangerous changes’ to the Early Childhood Education sector, despite no changes even being proposed yet. “Issues with affordability and availability of early childhood education, and the complexity of its regulation, has led ...2 days ago
- Kiwis having their say on first regulatory review
After receiving more than 740 submissions in the first 20 days, Regulation Minister David Seymour is asking the Ministry for Regulation to extend engagement on the early childhood education regulation review by an extra two weeks. “The level of interest has been very high, and from the conversations I’ve been ...2 days ago
- Government upgrading Lower North Island commuter rail
The Coalition Government is investing $802.9 million into the Wairarapa and Manawatū rail lines as part of a funding agreement with the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), KiwiRail, and the Greater Wellington and Horizons Regional Councils to deliver more reliable services for commuters in the lower North Island, Transport Minister Simeon ...2 days ago
- Government moves to ensure flood protection for Wairoa
Local Government Minister Simeon Brown has announced his intention to appoint a Crown Manager to both Hawke’s Bay Regional and Wairoa District Councils to speed up the delivery of flood protection work in Wairoa."Recent severe weather events in Wairoa this year, combined with damage from Cyclone Gabrielle in 2023 have ...3 days ago
- PM speech to Parliament – Royal Commission of Inquiry’s Report into Abuse in Care
Mr Speaker, this is a day that many New Zealanders who were abused in State care never thought would come. It’s the day that this Parliament accepts, with deep sorrow and regret, the Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. At the heart of this report are the ...3 days ago
- Government acknowledges torture at Lake Alice
For the first time, the Government is formally acknowledging some children and young people at Lake Alice Psychiatric Hospital experienced torture. The final report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in State and Faith-based Care “Whanaketia – through pain and trauma, from darkness to light,” was tabled in Parliament ...3 days ago
- Government acknowledges courageous abuse survivors
The Government has acknowledged the nearly 2,400 courageous survivors who shared their experiences during the Royal Commission of Inquiry into Historical Abuse in State and Faith-Based Care. The final report from the largest and most complex public inquiry ever held in New Zealand, the Royal Commission Inquiry “Whanaketia – through ...3 days ago
- Half a million people use tax calculator
With a week to go before hard-working New Zealanders see personal income tax relief for the first time in fourteen years, 513,000 people have used the Budget tax calculator to see how much they will benefit, says Finance Minister Nicola Willis. “Tax relief is long overdue. From next Wednesday, personal income ...3 days ago
- Paid Parental Leave improvements pass first reading
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says a bill that has passed its first reading will improve parental leave settings and give non-biological parents more flexibility as primary carer for their child. The Regulatory Systems Amendment Bill (No3), passed its first reading this morning. “It includes a change ...3 days ago
- Rebuilding the economy through better regulation
Two Bills designed to improve regulation and make it easier to do business have passed their first reading in Parliament, says Economic Development Minister Melissa Lee. The Regulatory Systems (Economic Development) Amendment Bill and Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill make key changes to legislation administered by the Ministry ...3 days ago
- ‘Open banking’ and ‘open electricity’ on the way
New legislation paves the way for greater competition in sectors such as banking and electricity, Commerce and Consumer Affairs Minister Andrew Bayly says. “Competitive markets boost productivity, create employment opportunities and lift living standards. To support competition, we need good quality regulation but, unfortunately, a recent OECD report ranked New ...3 days ago
- Charity lotteries to be permitted to operate online
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says lotteries for charitable purposes, such as those run by the Heart Foundation, Coastguard NZ, and local hospices, will soon be allowed to operate online permanently. “Under current laws, these fundraising lotteries are only allowed to operate online until October 2024, after which ...4 days ago
- Accelerating Northland Expressway
The Coalition Government is accelerating work on the new four-lane expressway between Auckland and Whangārei as part of its Roads of National Significance programme, with an accelerated delivery model to deliver this project faster and more efficiently, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says. “For too long, the lack of resilient transport connections ...4 days ago
- Sir Don to travel to Viet Nam as special envoy
Sir Don McKinnon will travel to Viet Nam this week as a Special Envoy of the Government, Foreign Minister Winston Peters has announced. “It is important that the Government give due recognition to the significant contributions that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong made to New Zealand-Viet Nam relations,” Mr ...4 days ago
- Grant Illingworth KC appointed as transitional Commissioner to Royal Commission
Minister of Internal Affairs Brooke van Velden says newly appointed Commissioner, Grant Illingworth KC, will help deliver the report for the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into COVID-19 Lessons, due on 28 November 2024. “I am pleased to announce that Mr Illingworth will commence his appointment as ...4 days ago
- NZ to advance relationships with ASEAN partners
Foreign Minister Winston Peters travels to Laos this week to participate in a series of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-led Ministerial meetings in Vientiane. “ASEAN plays an important role in supporting a peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Mr Peters says. “This will be our third visit to ...4 days ago
- Backing mental health services on the West Coast
Construction of a new mental health facility at Te Nikau Grey Hospital in Greymouth is today one step closer, Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says. “This $27 million facility shows this Government is delivering on its promise to boost mental health care and improve front line services,” Mr Doocey says. ...4 days ago
- NZ support for sustainable Pacific fisheries
New Zealand is committing nearly $50 million to a package supporting sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones announced today. “This support consisting of a range of initiatives demonstrates New Zealand’s commitment to assisting our Pacific partners ...4 days ago
- Students’ needs at centre of new charter school adjustments
Associate Education Minister David Seymour says proposed changes to the Education and Training Amendment Bill will ensure charter schools have more flexibility to negotiate employment agreements and are equipped with the right teaching resources. “Cabinet has agreed to progress an amendment which means unions will not be able to initiate ...4 days ago
- Commissioner replaces Health NZ Board
In response to serious concerns around oversight, overspend and a significant deterioration in financial outlook, the Board of Health New Zealand will be replaced with a Commissioner, Health Minister Dr Shane Reti announced today. “The previous government’s botched health reforms have created significant financial challenges at Health NZ that, without ...5 days ago
- Minister to speak at Australian Space Forum
Minister for Space and Science, Innovation and Technology Judith Collins will travel to Adelaide tomorrow for space and science engagements, including speaking at the Australian Space Forum. While there she will also have meetings and visits with a focus on space, biotechnology and innovation. “New Zealand has a thriving space ...5 days ago
- Climate Change Minister to attend climate action meeting in China
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts will travel to China on Saturday to attend the Ministerial on Climate Action meeting held in Wuhan. “Attending the Ministerial on Climate Action is an opportunity to advocate for New Zealand climate priorities and engage with our key partners on climate action,” Mr Watts says. ...5 days ago
- Oceans and Fisheries Minister to Solomons
Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones is travelling to the Solomon Islands tomorrow for meetings with his counterparts from around the Pacific supporting collective management of the region’s fisheries. The 23rd Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Committee and the 5th Regional Fisheries Ministers’ Meeting in Honiara from 23 to 26 July ...7 days ago
- Government launches Military Style Academy Pilot
The Government today launched the Military Style Academy Pilot at Te Au rere a te Tonga Youth Justice residence in Palmerston North, an important part of the Government’s plan to crackdown on youth crime and getting youth offenders back on track, Minister for Children, Karen Chhour said today. “On the ...7 days ago
- Nine priority bridge replacements to get underway
The Government has welcomed news the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) has begun work to replace nine priority bridges across the country to ensure our state highway network remains resilient, reliable, and efficient for road users, Transport Minister Simeon Brown says.“Increasing productivity and economic growth is a key priority for the ...1 week ago
- Update on global IT outage
Acting Prime Minister David Seymour has been in contact throughout the evening with senior officials who have coordinated a whole of government response to the global IT outage and can provide an update. The Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet has designated the National Emergency Management Agency as the ...1 week ago
- New Zealand, Japan renew Pacific partnership
New Zealand and Japan will continue to step up their shared engagement with the Pacific, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. “New Zealand and Japan have a strong, shared interest in a free, open and stable Pacific Islands region,” Mr Peters says. “We are pleased to be finding more ways ...1 week ago
- New infrastructure energises BOP forestry towns
New developments in the heart of North Island forestry country will reinvigorate their communities and boost economic development, Regional Development Minister Shane Jones says. Mr Jones visited Kaingaroa and Kawerau in Bay of Plenty today to open a landmark community centre in the former and a new connecting road in ...1 week ago
- 'Pacific Futures'
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Labour is going to build a large number of $500K-$600K first homes.
If your household income is around $90,000 to $120,000 p.a. thanks to Labour you should be able to afford one of these.
What’s your view CV ? A pointless exercise, would result in no overall improvement ?
Its a policy which will greatly help the top quintile by earnings.
If you are a median full time employed wage earner on $55K it doesnt help you. Unless your partner also earns similarly. If you are single or your partner doesnt work: sorry.
Strict rules will have to be put in place to prevent these properties being flipped on a few years down the track. Perhaps they can only be sold back to the government. This will suppress the prices of these houses long term.
I think Andrew is going to shift the 2 year clause out to 5 years for the penalty to kick in.
Edit “It will also extend the ‘bright line test’ from two years to five years so investment properties on-sold within five years have to pay a tax on the capital gains achieved.”
Face it – we are all hissing into the wind unless the average house price drops enough to suit the average wage-earner, or the average wage rises enough to enable buying a house.
Surely we all know that neither will come to pass.
So what you are actually trying to do is to help those who are currently not quite rich enough. But this still limits the help to the rich.
That does not inspire me. (I started very late – could have bought in 1970 with 3% State Advances loan, but did not. Bought a $49,000 house in 1982. It is now worth nearly 10 times that. Unearned and bloody ridiculous. Nobody should be able to make unearned profit.)
The bubble needs somehow a big deflation rather than a burst.
Sorry – none of this inspires me much. The system needs fundamental correction, not just another superficial temporary massage.
It would be a step in the right direction if the average dual income family could afford a home in the Auckland market. Which sucks especially hard for single parents. But this is where things are at.
+100 In Vino
Considering homes in that range are only 4% of the Auckland market at the moment, it’s not bad.
But I think Labour should not have ceded the Urban Growth Boundary argument to the glee of land bankers. There’s plenty of space within Auckland without more endless sprawl required, ffs Auckland is already ridiculously spread out. The problem isn’t the urban limits its a building industry that can’t keep up (and is rorting the situation). The biggest single cost of a house in Auckland is the construction, not the land
http://www.beaconpathway.co.nz/new-homes/article/cost_tower
” Considering homes in that range are only 4% of the Auckland market at the moment, it’s not bad.”
Yes this Labour policy targets households earning around $100K pa which were finding themselves priced out of the market.
True, but perhaps the social housing end of the market is better managed by HNZ than the proposed “Affordable Housing Authority”? Need to hear more on this from Lab/Green
nothing wrong with putting price pressure on the market with housing aimed at that demographic PROVIDED the social housing and rental market is also addressed (i.e. emergency and state rentals)……assistance to buy first homes is nothing new and this is simply a variation on that theme……removing some of the ticket clippers, hopefully.
OK, so the Kiwi dream of house ownership is for those in the $100K earnings bracket.
the dream remains…..home ownership has never been 100% (it peaked at a shade under 74% in 1991) even in the heady days of state housing builds….thats why state house rentals were built.
Do you read the policy- ever-?
half the houses are for Auckland, the rest for other cities in NZ.
median household income in Auckland is $76k(2013) already ( highest in NZ, so is probably over $80k now)). so the $100k figure is just made up by you.
You normally have these sort of things sorted , so Im surprised you have slipped up here.
Using a house price to income ratio of 5 as the limit of affordability, a $500,000 house in this scheme requires $100K pa household income.
Also by the time the first house in Labours scheme is finished in 2019 it’ll probably be up to $700,000 given 10% annual price increases.
Those are retail prices, which include hefty profit factor.
TDTI ( total debt to income ratio) can go as high as 6-7.
Labours scheme has apartments as well as houses , so they will be young couples who can afford an apartment in Auckland , or a house in Hamilton
http://www.rbnz.govt.nz/financial-stability/financial-stability-report/fsr2015-11/debt-to-income-ratios-of-new-zealand-borrowers
That’s dreaming.
Ask a working couple earning $80,000 per year total what they think of having $500,000 worth of mortgage debt requiring $21,000 pa interest alone.
If interest rates bumped up to 6% for any reason that would be $30,000 pa interest charges to be serviced out of a $80K pa gross income.
If a number of people in the $100k plus wage bracket can afford to buy new houses. this will free up rentals which while not perfect is a step in the right direction.
Yeah that was my thought add well. Expanding the boundaries only plays into the hands of the land bankers.
Actually, the biggest cost of building is the materials. That’s the problem of having a duopoly and most of the raw materials are sent off shore for the benefit of the owners rather than having them used here for the benefit of New Zealand.
With materials it’s also a function of scale, virtually all the houses built in New Zealand are one offs. Our Housing Trust in Queenstown is doing good things by getting the scale up into the 10s. I would hope a Crown building programme would get this up by a couple orders of magnitude. Get standard designs that you are building 1000s of and costs come down with a wallop.
CV you are such a cherry picking negative wanker. I am so sick of you trolling this site. No doubt you will spend the rest of day with dozens of negative nitpicking comments. So to balance out all your negativity.
Little said terrace housing would be under $500K -only the stand alone housing would be $500 to $600K. These house prices are a massive improvement on the $1 million average that the market currently offers and would be a huge step towards affordability.
Anyone can criticise the good for not being the perfect. But in the real world perfect doesn’t exist and moving towards the good is the better policy.
I think Andrew Little and Labour did well today -they were brave and pragmatic. It was an excellent birthday celebration.
A $400K terrace house, using a house price to income affordability ratio of 5 (which is already generally considered “highly unaffordable”) would require an income level of $80K p.a.
No one is denying that this is better than the current situation. But lets be clear who is helped by housing at these price levels, and who is not.
That is why we needed state housing reform package announced earlier this week and why we need to move on improving renting conditions and security of tenure rights. It is all part of a broad package that overall will massively improve housing conditions for kiwis.
P.S $80,000 is about the median household income, so a $400,000 terrace house would help the median income earning family.
@Brendan Harre (1.3)
+1
According to Trademe Property there are currently 775 homes for sale in the Auckland market at your “affordable” price, that is a huge number to choose from, how much more choice do you want?
http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/CategoryAttributeSearchResults.aspx?sort_order=expiry_desc&search=1&cid=5748&sidebar=1&132=PROPERTY&134=1&135=&216=0%2C0&217=0%2C0&153=&29=Apartment%2CHouse%2CLifestyle+dwelling%2CTownhouse%2CUnit&122=0%2C0&123=0%2C0&49=300000%2C550000&178=0%2C0&sidebarSearch_keypresses=0&sidebarSearch_suggested=0
Those are CV’s (council valuations not the other CV), the sale prices tend to be double that. Also there’s a crapload of apartments, 1 brm units, and places for auction on your list. Auctions tend to go miles over any sensible value at the moment.
Hmmm, well it’s not my list, it’s Trademe’s, and they are not CV’s, they are the asking prices, but say we reduce the list to 3 and 4 bedroom homes; there’s still a choice of a mere 256 places for sale in that range in the Auckland area, is that not enough?
http://www.trademe.co.nz/Browse/CategoryAttributeSearchResults.aspx?sort_order=price_desc&search=1&cid=5748&sidebar=1&132=PROPERTY&134=1&135=&216=0%2C0&217=0%2C0&153=&29=Apartment%2CHouse%2CLifestyle+dwelling%2CTownhouse%2CUnit&122=3%2C4&123=0%2C0&49=300000%2C550000&178=0%2C0&sidebarSearch_keypresses=0&sidebarSearch_suggested=0
Why not have a look at this one?
75J Hill Street, Onehunga
Location: 75I/(J) Hill Street
Onehunga, Auckland City
Rooms: 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms
Property type: House
Price: Asking price $320,000
Parking: 2 Car Garage
Modern townhouse nicely spread over three levels, complimented by four large bedrooms, and a generous living area, that joins onto the outside courtyard.
http://www.trademe.co.nz/property/residential-property-for-sale/auction-710644853.htm
Yeah nay. It is a leasehold property you muppet.
So what, muppet?
[Focus on ideas, not personalities, please. TRP]
“Presently tenanted by Housing New Zealand until 22nd May 2018. This property is also Leasehold. “
So, what’s your point?
you do know what a leasehold property is?
Yeah, I’ve got some idea. Large areas of Karori and Newlands, here in Wellington, are leasehold sections, owned by Manchester Unity and other trusts. My in-laws house on Wrights Hill, Karori was a leasehold section, they didn’t die under pressure of payments. It’s a viable option for first-home buyers especially and is a sensible option for Labour to explore, but…hey, if you don’t like it, there are still another 255 properties to look at…go for your life.
think I’ll pass thanks….like most folk I think leasehold properties are to be avoided like the plague…..theres good reasons why banks are far more restrictive on their lending for them.
That’s a leasehold property so you’re paying a hefty ground rental separately to buying the house. And you’re totally helpless when it comes to rent review time, it could go up to anything.
https://www.kensingtonswan.com/Legal-Updates-And-Events/Property/2014/Leasehold-properties-beware-the-rent-review.aspx
Fair enough, but in what way is it not affordable?
You are not “totally helpless” when it comes to rent review time, you have options including selling the property, using your (hoped for) capital gains or property improvements to take another small step up the ladder, that’s the way the vast majority of people gain value; hard work and small increments. It’s worthwhile, I assure you.
unless you know the details on the lease and the term to run you have no way of knowing its affordability or value, so as an example it is pointless
Well then Pat, drop that property off your list, there are still 255 others to look at, and time waits for nobody…
In the law firm paper I linked, the ground rent went from $8300pa to $73750 pa, so the owner abandoned the property and lost everything she had paid for it.
In the Onehunga property you linked to, the ground rental on a neighbouring property (looks exactly the same) in the same block is a bit over $14k pa, plus body corp fees plus etc. That’s on top of $340k for the house. That doesn’t look affordable to me. Then you’ve got the risk of having to walk away from it all if the rent review does what the Cornwall Park Trust ground rents did.
I appreciate what you’re saying Andre, that there are horror stories, and I accept that, but there are also numerous good stories, yours could be one yet to be told. Don’t be afraid of a lease-hold section…check out your landlords by all means, and if they are bastards, well then they are bastards and stay away from them, but don’t be afraid of the concept, it could be the best thing you ever did.
good grief, you sound like a realtor…are you on commission?
Not so far Pat, but I’m open to offers.
Seriously though, Labour should be considering this. Forget Kiwibuild and think Kiwisite.
Government should not be involved in house-building in a big way, not with all the legal requirements and related whoo-har of end-product value or usage, lack of productivity, poor quality, or the shortfalls implicit in complaints associated with people’s aspirations, but instead home in on an on-going, long-term, cash return based on viability and affordability of sections alone, this is a concept most Kiwis would be comfortable with, it would be a far better focus, and could be accommodated under the NZ Superannuation Fund and ACC Funds terms of business without compromising earnings potential.
KIwi site is a great idea, free up and develop the land and then get out of the way.
Unfortunately socialists are control freaks and can’t cope if they aren’t controlling the whole process.
“Government should not be involved in house-building in a big way, not with all the legal requirements and related whoo-har of end-product value or usage, lack of productivity, poor quality, or the shortfalls implicit in complaints associated with people’s aspirations, but instead home in on an on-going, long-term, cash return based on viability and affordability of sections alone, this is a concept most Kiwis would be comfortable with, it would be a far better focus, and could be accommodated under the NZ Superannuation Fund and ACC Funds terms of business without compromising earnings potential.”
one more time….in english if you would be so kind.
Yep, ok Pat, fair point.
Let me try again;
Labour should not pretend to be house-builders, they should concentrate on supplying developed sections which could then be leased back to lessees based on the capital value of the building above the ground (already reliably and timely assessed and re-assessed by QVNZ or local councils, so there is no extra level of cost).
Disappointments related to mortgage restrictions made by banks on houses built on leasehold sections, due to the perceived volativity in ground rents, would disappear, or largely disappear, if backed by HNZ long-term leases.
The capital cost of home-building could be halved, at least in Auckland’s case, and in this way every tradesman or teacher, Jack or Jill or in-between, could aspire to an affordable home and the security that offers, and taxpayers would receive a return on thier investment, forever.
I don’t see negatives, compared to the alternatives.
so idbkiwi you reckon the govt should
a) develop new subdivisions & associated infrastructure
b) offer the developed land to the open market on 100 year leases or something
c) jack up the lease price if someone actually puts a house on top?
That isn’t going to encourage development much
IMO a land value tax will work better. It’s similar to rates, but the difference is the same tax applies whether you have developed the land or not. Effectively this discourages land banking & encourages greater housing density.
OK…
“Labour should not pretend to be house-builders,”
No they should not pretend, but they can (and have in the past) been that and the private sector have made a pigs ear of the construction industry these past few decades so on that I disagree.
As to government owned leasehold land on say 99 year lease that i have no real issue with and it may well offer some of the cost benefits to which you refer, though I would suggest the public would prefer freehold and act accordingly and the leases would have to be watertight to prevent future government modification.
“256 places for sale in that range in the Auckland area, is that not enough?”
hmmm and HOW may people do we have arriving to live in Auckland each day ?
you “256 places ” is maybe a 1-2 week supply @ best ?
pathetic…
Christ CV at least read the speech before sniping at it. The policy includes apartments which will be significantly cheaper.
Labour’s announcement definitely helps people who are in the top quartile income bracket own their own home, no mistake about it.
At 5x your earnings, houses are generally regarded as highly unaffordable.
Going lower end, $400K terrace houses or apartments will work for those households earning $80K or more.
For a couple both working full time minimum wage ~$65K pa total income they will likely have to stay renting long term.
Labour’s plan can be built on. Coalition partners will have good ideas too. So howz John Key’s brighter future doing for everyone Colonial Viper? Sounds like you rather retain the Nats current outrageous mess, rather than give Labour a fair go.
No more 1/4 way measures.
That’s just the way you think. Sad really.
@ Colonial Viper 10 July 2016 at 6:54 pm:
You seem to be displaying shades of absolutistic, dichotomous thinking, i.e. black & white, all or nothing, etc.
Potential solutions are judged on achieving 100% cure, success, or whatever; anything less is considered short of the mark and thus utterly and completely (!) futile.
This seems to fit with your apparent contempt for NZ Labour, for example, which you have supported in the past I believe.
The only reason why I raise this – and I might well be very wrong – is that your negativity is starting to grate and is becoming a distraction, at least for me, and I find it increasingly difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff in your comments. So, essentially, this comment is about me more than anything …
How stupid of me thinking that building lots of houses would help the lack of housing crisis.
FFS CV improve the quality of your comments. Please.
MS, just pointing out that building $400K, $500K and $600K houses destined for first home owners is going to help a very select group of aspiring first home owners.
Those with household incomes in the $80K to $120K range.
(And I’m being generous here – by the time Labour can implement this policy, both land costs and build costs will have increased another 20%)
For other Kiwis who aren’t lucky enough to be that well off…the “Kiwi dream of home ownership” apparently ain’t for you.
And who exactly are Labour helping to become first home owners? Those people who sit in the top half of household incomes.
Well that do good for these people? Of course it will. Never denied it.
This is also the demographic you can count on to swing vote for their own best interests.
Which workers will be lucky, not these ones:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/81788403/the-struggle-to-balance-budgets-for-todays-working-poor
There are cheaper town houses and apartments too. Honestly, read the policy dude.
CV, most poor people do not have a income anywhere near the $90,000-$12,000,00 that you say is required.
This so called radical policy from Labour is fucking humbug and will do nothing for the poor people of NZ except make them more poor to the rest of the population.
Rip off politics from Andrew Little and the Labour party.
Fellow NZs wake up to these self serving bastards.
It’s good for the middle class voters (and their kids) who are being priced out of the Auckland housing market.
What’s the advantage in me buying a house off Kiwi Build instead of getting some one like G.J. Gardner to build it for me directly?
Also when did it become, your first home has to be a brand new home?
Supposedly a KB house will be cheaper? Economies of scale, supply chain optimisation, lower markup and what not
I’m assuming G.J. Gardner, Jennians and all the other housing companies will be building these houses.
If you add the the cost of running Kiwibuild into the mix I can’t see how it’s going to be cheaper unless this who thing is going to be tax payer subsidised.
I’ll be honest I wouldn’t be too impressed if my tax dollars were going toward people buying a flash brand new house.
if the houses go to auction, prices would indeed be bid up to current silly numbers, presumably these houses would be sold by some form of rationing
these houses would be sold by some form of rationing
Yeah and I’ll bet all the labour/green party members will “some how” end up at the front of the queue.
That’ s so typical of the left.
I am with you on most of this, Working for Families is just as obviously a subsidy to middle NZ and to minimum wage employers. In order to be truly affordable these homes need to be around 250k and really basic. That would help a lot more people than 500k houses for young professional labour voters.
iam picking homes built on such a scale will move from the site to the factory as they do in Europe ,production automation would take care of any changes people wanted . working hours per house would plummet also you wouldn’t need skilled labour , skilled labour would only be necessary in siting the home.
https://youtu.be/1X-9W0P-8Tc
automation is coming and kiwi build is perfect scale for its use
https://youtu.be/fpD5H1EH0go
From the detail released so far:
– You need to be a first home buyer
– You buy directly from the Govt (department)
– The house will be encumbered by the Govt that you can’t on sell for x number of years.
Maybe if demand exceeds supply some kind of raffle / lottery for the lucky family??
You can sell it, but any profit above the initial sale price (and presumably cost of sale) in those X years will go back to the government.
“I’ll be honest I wouldn’t be too impressed if my tax dollars were going toward”
to be fair mate i cant imagine your happy about paying any tax AT ALL…
lol
based on your assumptions you can’t see it, and you wouldn’t be impressed by another of your assumptions.
Come on, BM, you can spin better than that if it’s actually a bad policy.
Because this is a $500-600k house AND land, in Auckland.
Go try and build a house for that price in Auckland now, including land, with G.J. Gardner and see how you get on.
There will be 50,000 of these houses, rather than the 400 or 500 that GJ Gardner might be able to supply, on the very fringes of the city.
So the saving will be in the land price?, because G.J. Gardner isn’t going to build it for nothing.
A part of the saving will be in the land price, the other part will be from the economies of scale and new methods (see the mention of prefabrication), and another part will be a saving in consenting and standard overhead costs.
So it would be something like this?.
The government will grab land using the public works act, then develop the land for housing using some one like fulton hogan and then hire housing companies to build on the new sections.?
The public will then buy the houses off the government at a greatly reduced price because the government is doing everything at cost.?
If this is indeed the case you’d be mad to buy a house from anyone but KiwiBuild.
That seems to be the plan.
Bearing in mind, that if you sell it within 5 years, all profit above the initial purchase price goes back to the government.
What do you think that will do to house prices?
No idea.
You don’t think it may put down ward pressure on house prices.
Lets be honest no private firm will be able to get near the prices of what the government could build a house for.
It’s a bit of a no brainer why pay 800k when you can get the same thing for 600k
Going to be tough for a lot of developers or housing companies that do house and land packages because everyone will want to get a house via Kiwi Build.
It’s not the same thing. For starters, if you re-sell your $600k house within 5 years, you don’t get to keep any of the profit.
I’m sure they’ll have rules about owner-occupiers only. They may have other rules too, about who qualifies to buy a house, and how the houses are dished out, like a lottery.
So these houses simply won’t be on the same level as the others.
But yes, the point of this policy is to take heat out of the market. If a bunch of supply becomes available that meets a large part of the demand (houses for owner-occupiers to buy and live in), then it means the rest of the housing stock will have less aggregate demand, easing house price pressure.
“You don’t think it may put down ward pressure on house prices.”
isn’t that the point in an unaffordable housing market?
But yes, the point of this policy is to take heat out of the market. If a bunch of supply becomes available that meets a large part of the demand (houses for owner-occupiers to buy and live in), then it means the rest of the housing stock will have less aggregate demand, easing house price pressure.
There’ll be a lot of unhappy monkeys, who’ll all blame Labor.
Can’t see them voting left in 2017..
Be like a Turkey voting for Christmas.
“There’ll be a lot of unhappy monkeys, who’ll all blame Labor.
Can’t see them voting left in 2017..
Be like a Turkey voting for Christmas.”
well there may be some upset turkeys but I suspect you overestimate their number….I would suggest most property owners will be reasonably happy to see the bubble deflated somewhat….especially when the alternative is a wholesale crash.
tough
Oh noes, property developers will all be homeless in the future! No, wait, we could always build some houses for them…
@ BM 10 July 2016 at 5:21 pm:
Who are those “mon-keys” and what exactly will they blame Labour for?
Do you really think that your imaginary doomsday scenario will eventuate, i.e. that house prices will go down?
IMO the more likely scenario is that the absurd rises in house prices will come down somewhat but they will still rise.
Another likely scenario, according to many experts, so don’t take my word for it, is that if we stay on the current course, i.e. do nothing and hope for the best as National seems to be doing, we’re in for a major ‘correction’ AKA an uncontrolled and uncontrollable collapse of the market.
My guess is that you, and some other commenters here on TS, will opt for the second scenario without giving it a second thought! I believe there is a name for that: cognitive distortion. (NB don’t look this up; it’s depressing reading)
Those greedy monkeys cannot keep expecting free money as a birthright simply because Mummy and Daddy gave them a house deposit and wealthy foreigners want to launder dirty money.
I’d presume the KB homes would also be to standard plans with basically no options. Think Neil or Keith Hay from late 70’s, which were a response to a similar situation in early 70’s, but in current vernacular. So basic designs, really standard componentry, but with the government taking the spec risk, not the builder. If you want something better, then go direct to the builders.
and even then you can do all the internal fripperies yourself, like different kitchen bench etc, if bogstandard (or the standard bogs) isn’t good enough for you.
Pleasing to see that Labour will extend National’s 2 year CGT out to 5 years, ought to be longer. Some policies that should make a real difference.
Would have liked to see some policies with real teeth like a LVT and FTT. Disappointing that AL spoke positively of property “investors” as opposed to “speculators”; in my book they are the same. I consider the NZ cult of landlordism to be immoral, all rentals should be non profit (and all banking for that matter).
Should also ban *all* offshore buyers, allowing foreign “investors” to build & buy still takes builders & land out of the domestic market.
I suspect that the size of this category will be small and not put a significant demand on and compete for resources.
To treat the market as one amorphous whole in which state housing is lumped with upper-market housing is losing sight of important detail & differences IMO and not conducive to good policy setting.
Similarly, to treat investors and speculators the exact same way is overlooking important differences. Labour is careful not to spook the business sector and private investors as you can tell from AL’s speech.
One might argue that Labour is using market tools to try and deal with social issues that cannot be fixed by the market alone (obviously) or arguably have been created/increased by market forces. Only a dogmatic purist would vehemently object IMO.
The devil will be in the details.
100,000 new affordable houses over 10 years, add in another 1,000+ new state houses per year that = 11,000+ new house’s per year. On top of that we already build about 8,000 new houses in Auckland per year. Easy for Andrew Little to promise this in the safety of opposition, another to deliver.
The affordable homes ($550 – $600k!) will not be able to be on-sold, Little has already pointed this out. Interesting to see just how long they are encumbered for…what happens if a family circumstance changes? are they locked in for 10 years?. Will lenders lend on standard terms if the price is suppressed? think mortgagee sales or a down turn in the property market.
Only for first home buyers? what about the Smith family (example) who owned a house somewhere other than Auckland. They move to Auckland for work, all they can afford is $600k to buy…they are still out in the cold under Labour.
At the moment its sound bites for the faithful…the public will be waiting for the details and ability / chance that Labour can deliver on its promise’s.
You can’t do it, that’s true. That’s because you’re a delusional fuckwit, in a team of delusional fuckwits, whose sole purpose is naked self-interest.
You worship market forces, and yet you’ve failed to notice the most powerful market force of all.
You can’t do it. Get out of the way before you get hurt.
When you resort to name calling OAB, basically it means you have nothing…its school 101 type of thing.
I do hold out hope that at some stage in the future, you can be a productive member of society… I will not give up on you buddy!
Oh, indeed, the labels I apply to you are irrelevant.
The market force you’ve failed to notice is the substantive part of my contempt for your opinions.
As for your insulting reference to your hallucinations about my life, oh noes, it’s exactly like my labels only longer, you vermiculous trash.
You are making good progress OAB…let it all out, I am here for you mate.
Stop projecting, Wormtongue.
I have faith in old OAB as well, we are all here for him, possibly and exorcism may help with his anger, a few demons lie within I suspect.
When ya don’t have enough affordable houses you bloody well build some more!
Labour, been doing it since ages ago!
YES, SPOT ON !!!!
Good policy, nice speech-writing. Well done, Labour.
Agreed Sacha.
All this focus on Auckland housing. Hope we can also get thousands of affordable homes in other parts of the country. Say $210K to $250K in price.
$400K to $600K housing options still aren’t affordable to the vast bulk of working people.
Andrew Little did say it’s not just Auckland, regions around the country too.
Yet it’s still a lot cheaper than the current cost. Labour have outlined a plan that can be built on, to assist Kiwis into a home, what is wrong in that? Far better than the no future the key National government is offering.
I agree, Labour’s plan helps a lot more people, if your household is in the ~$80K to $120K income bracket Labour will help get you into the ‘Kiwi dream’ of your own home.
Anyone in that income bracket in Auckland who is not yet a home owner should certainly swing their vote to Labour.
Just because it’s not written in neon lights for you Colonial Viper, Labour have not forgotten those in lower income brackets. What we have seen in the announcements is the direction Labour is heading, it’s a beginning for change that will be built on. We should be welcoming that. At least Labour is offering Kiwis a future, we don’t have that with John key and his Nats.
“All this focus on Auckland housing.”
Tiresome. Get over yourself. This is where 60% of the population growth is projected over the next few decades – two thirds of it from internal births, not migration. Auckland is where the problem bites hardest. It is where the solution is needed most. Nothing you or I say will change that.
Labour’s housing plan ad
<a href="https://nz.news.yahoo.com/top-stories/a/32024143/labour-outlines-plan-for-more-homes/#page1
Nice, I hope Labour puts this on Bill Boards next year.
I hope so too.
Good speech.
Labour really need to look at the tiny house movement. If you are on a minimum wage job then you need something under 300,000 not 500,000-600,000. The only way to achieve that is to build smaller. Currently only apartments are built smaller but are often not suitable for families and often have high body corporates so cost more.
In other countries they have allowed tiny houses to be built with free permits to save costs and within a single story be able to be sited on existing sites with existing infrastructure. At present the proposed unitary plan increased height zoning is a joke, with the council approving many properties in violation of the district plan guide lines which are not affordable and over size – they are actually driving people on Kiwi incomes out of districts, as by the time a property becomes a 3 story mansion it becomes unaffordable on local wages, and are often totally unsustainable in most respects. One of the reasons that Auckland house prices are escalating is that houses are being doubled or tripled in size and therefore are going to cost a lot more. The idea of increased height to boundary seems to be to drive terraced housing but it is not working at all, instead larger mansion are being built that are creating inner city mansion districts away from the traditional bungalows priced much more affordably.
A few years ago you could buy a studio apartment in Auckland for $200,000 now it is close to impossible. One of the reason’s first home buyers could not buy them was that the bank would not lend unless you had a 30% deposit.
The other issue is the proposed capital gains road tax, that clearly will discriminate for the cheaper further out areas of housing. It is clearly not going to work to build houses in the greenfield areas like Drury, Whenuapai, and Kumeu if people have to pay $30 – $100 in road charges per person per week and then have to pay petrol on top of that. BTW, just a section in Kumeu is over $400,000 so you would be looking further out like Helensville and then you need to look at high speed rail to link and place to park for park and ride.
The other big issue is migration, if migrants who have settled here at a rate of 60,000 overseas students living here and trying to gain residency and 60,000 new migrants then it is a waste of time trying to build the houses, Labour will not be able to keep up with that level of change in the population. Migration is the biggest factor inflaming the housing. Once that falls, then investors will stop being in the market as it will flatline the prices and there will be no profit to be made.
One man’s Tiny House is another man’s caravan park.
Save me from Kirsten Dirksen.
Make the rule no renting. If you take the tiny house route you sack the landlord forever.
Tiny houses are for hair shirters.
What are “hair shirters”?
+100 save nz…”Migration is the biggest factor inflaming the housing”…and overseas ownership…and we still don’t have the stats on this
actually I am not that impressed with Labour’s housing policy…too Little to late…and building a few more houses for those on a relatively good income won’t affect the crisis in housing much imo until the underlying core of the problem is addressed
…and state houses should not be sold off …they should be repaired and renovated…as well as many many new ones built for New Zealanders
Well, according to some we may have to wait till 2020 (GR2020?) before this policy may be implemented.
They may not get what they wish for Incognito. They don’t seem to be on the side of average Kiwis do they?
Indeed!
I really don’t know what’s behind their (wishful?) thinking and what purpose it serves, if any, for the good of all.
I have very few answers and many questions and admittedly sometimes feel a little overwhelmed by it all …
Same here.
“…and state houses should not be sold off …they should be repaired and renovated…as well as many many new ones built for New Zealanders”
That’s what Labour is proposing.
“and building a few more houses for those on a relatively good income won’t affect the crisis in housing much imo until the underlying core of the problem is addressed”
But it’s not just a few houses though, it’s 100,000 and that will go a long way in resolving the crisis. It’s a start isn’t it? Or would you rather stick with John key and the dismal, bleak status quo?
“actually I am not that impressed with Labour’s housing policy…too Little to late…”
That’s a surprise, NOT!! Sour grapes? Little’s big bold plans are timely, and they are what is really needed right now.
Watched Newshub on Little’s housing speech. Paddy E Neuman trying to claim that Labour’s election future will sink or swim solely on this one policy issue.Does he really think Labour is a one policy party? Watch this space for more Paddy.
And didn’t you love Mr Joyce’s frenetic spin/sneer response to Andrew Little’s housing policy announcement. Apparently it’s called ‘post truth politics.’…Donald would be proud of you Stephen..
Lol they know they are on the back foot.
I think its more that Nationals biggest weakness is housing affordability so if Labour don’t get any traction with this then it’s all over until 2020
Kindly correct me if I am wrong.
“The next Labour Government will build 100,000 new affordable homes to be on sold to first home buyers.
Working with the private sector and experts in fields like prefabrication, we can build standalone homes for $500,000-$600,000 in Auckland, with apartments and town houses for less than $500,000”
Andrew Little claims that he will use $2,000,000,000 to build 100,000 houses.
Do the arithmetic . Does anyone seriously believe you can buy a section and build a house for $20,000? of course not.
He acknowledges the minimum cost would be $500,000. That equates to just 4,000 houses.
Dude, the $2B is only needed to build the first few houses with.
The government then sells those completed houses into the market to raise the next tranche of funding required to complete another phase of houses.
It is not necessary or desirable to have all the cash available up front for 100,000 houses lol. You only need to be able to fund the first part of the first phase of the project then start selling units off the plans to get more $$$ rolling in.
Wasnt there a rent to own policy for state houses, or was just that a policy suggestion,
But that’s just a copy of what is already happening. What a damp squib. I actually thought he was going to announce something radical.
Nothing is what is happening Fisiani, that’s why Labour have come up with an achievable, practical, comprehensive plan to put Kiwis into homes. Labour have done it before, and will do it again. Who said anything about it having to be radical?
A fair point barring that the policy encompasses once the houses are sold the funds will used to payback the tax payer loan, only leaving profit for reinvestment, which i suggest based on making housing affordable this will be very little
Okay, so when National put up $1Bn for councils to move forward infrastructure programs there were howls that this would only allow 500 houses to be brought forward. Based on this logic, $2Bn would cover 1,000 houses.
Let’s say 6 months for council consents / land development (generous), 6 months to build (again, generous) and buyers are already lining up so no downtime on purchase, the means $2Bn would build around 1,000 homes / year, 10,000 over 10 years.
So now I ask, where are the other 90,000 homes coming from???
It’s all too difficult for right wingers to comprehend. That’s why you make shit governments.
Ah, now I understand where they are coming from, thank you for once again enlightening the world with your pure intellect. Great contribution as always OAB.
That’s rich coming from someone whose sole contribution is “it’s too ambitious, let’s do nothing”.
If you can’t figure out how a government can build more houses than the one you support, well, that probably explains your support for such a pack of incompetent buck-passing dimbulbs.
Bullshit OAB, my contribution was suggesting raising the minimum wage significantly to increase inflation, allowing the Reserve Bank to increase interest rates: http://thestandard.org.nz/open-mike-26052016/#comment-1179200
This has already been singled out as the ‘biggest risk’ to Australian house prices: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&objectid=11672222
Of course my ‘right wing’ ideas are obviously too hard for you to comprehend.
What was your contribution again OAB? Oh that’s right:
“Oh noes, property developers will all be homeless in the future! No, wait, we could always build some houses for them…”
“That’s because you’re a delusional fuckwit, in a team of delusional fuckwits, whose sole purpose is naked self-interest”
“Stop projecting, Wormtongue.”
“If you can’t figure out how a government can build more houses than the one you support, well, that probably explains your support for such a pack of incompetent buck-passing dimbulbs.”
Such enlightening commentary.
You’ve proposed a lot of “market” tinkering, in other words, that won’t see a single homeless family housed, and when it doesn’t, you’ll act all surprised and come up with some more market tinkering that won’t get a single extra house built either.
Brighter future, remember: the party of no plan and no ideas needs to get out of the way.
Private developers in Auckland are building low end houses in 8 weeks now. Everything is timed to the day, ie deliveries to the time of day, subbies to be there on a certain day as well. The costs are lowered by not having large areas of sliding doors and more insulation to do away with need for double glazing.
Existing consent rules allow standard house designs to be pre approved, so if you have 10 designs, once one is consented doesnt need individual consent again.
For far loo long NZ has built over individual designs , which is Ok for people who want this or that but it makes the houses un affordable in the process.
Who really needs over 75 different aluminium window colours to choose from, and every window is unique dimensions. Lets have 12 window sizes and 12 different colours and save maoney
Can you give me an example of such a development?
I was under the impression that developers far prefer to build higher margin homes, minimum $800K selling price.
Also, some of the houses will be built outside Auckland…
Very cool that Andrew Little acknowledged David Cunliffe and gave him a special mention. I liked that a lot.
Labour should be promising millions to places like this who cater for those most in need of housing and shelter…I know this is what Mana/Internet ( a real Left Party) would do if it was in power
http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport/audio/201807765/several-whare-closed-at-deathtrap-marae
“A Wellington urban marae built by homeless youth, ex-cons, and gang members is struggling financially after the closure of several of its buildings by the Wellington City Council. The Council says it’s a death trap. Our reporter Daniela Maoate-Cox visited the marae to find out more.”
( This Marae 20+ years ago provided free of charge large native trees for me to plant in our local council owned rough wilderness reserve above Wellington city…Bruce Stewart and whanau have hearts of gold and are real environmentalists and Greenies
…and why is Wellington Council NOT helping them?!…bring them up to standard instead of closing them!!!….utterly heartless and disgraceful!)
…instead of tearing down ‘substandard’ state houses and selling them off to privatising speculators…they should be renovated by unemployed NZ youth who could be taught carpentry and other skills under supervision…this is what a real Labour Government of Micky Savage would do
…Labour should be attacking jonkey nactional on selling off existing housing stock
Looks like Andrew Little’s Labour is a real Labour led Government in waiting, that you are calling for Chooky. Didn’t you read the speech etc?
OK….Lets check the numbers.
$2,000,000,000
$500,000 per house
4000 houses
to meet the target 3334 houses built every 4 month
ie land found, bought, consented, infra structure built and all house constructed finished and sold….in 4 months.
So they can do it all over again, every 4 months for 10 years….really?
Questions:
Where is the initial money coming from?
Where are the builders, electricians, plumbers, painters etc coming from?
Have you told the workers, to keep the price at $500 000, they can’t have a pay rise for 10 years?
So inflation will be ZERO under your plan, for 10 years?
On the money that you will HAVE to borrow initially to fund it, you expect to pay ZERO interest?
Apart from compulsory purchase of PRIVATE land, there will be no price increases of land due to the artificial demand created by the govt.?
Should there be compulsory purchase, you will need to change the law to create the ability for the Govt. to compulsory purchase land. Which was, in my understanding, used for war time purchases to create things like army bases and airstrips.
This new ministry will cost no more to run than the current system (yeah right)?
etc etc
Yep your right John
How will the Natz manage it?
The Natz won’t of course but what they will do is pick massive holes in this plan and try to turn it into just another “game-changer” of Labour
The Gnats have entered their ‘dying swan’ phase – they’re all dying to swan off to Indonesia or Europe like John and stop even pretending to give a shit about New Zealand.
I’d have thought that Labour would have realised that, based of the previous 8 years, that any plan they come up with will be picked apart by National
Again I agree PR. !!!!
NATZ are good at negative BUT not so good a planning themselves.
Heres the thing though, at the moment the only real concern for National is housing affordability, there not really any other issue that could potentially lose the election for National
So what Labour should be doing with housing is making sure that whatever plan they come up with measures up, its not to work out what National will do
Work out what National will say about the plan and then come up with a (credible) answer to Nationals objections
Already doing it!!!
40 houses per day need nearer 50 that is why this number is increasing.
14,600 per year
Need 16000
No need to change the law; we have the Public Works Act which allows govt and councils to buy any land they need.
Only for specific purposes, which don’t include generic housing.
Nope. Read the act. Govt’s power is almost limitless. Any land for any reason they see fit
In that case, I hope it’s your place.
Maybe then you’d see it as draconian over reach of Govt.
In that case I also don’t want National to do it either.
Buy the land from owners at Market rate, IF they will sell it to you.
land is taken all the time when people dont want to sell. Most of Nationals expensive highways would have had land acquired compulsorily or under the threat of compulsion.
I’m not justifying it just educating you on its existence.
It’s unlikely amy of us will encounter it unless someone wants to build a rail tunnel, sewage or water pipe, power line, airport, road, or other government memorial on, over or under your property. If they want to do it beside yours, though, you’re stuffed; you’re not entitled to a cent
Interest costs are never taken into account for the cost of any government spending.
Even when they should be, eg when National borrowed for tax cuts.
Sure they are:
Borrowing paid for infrastructure (roads etc)
Income tax cuts were covered by increase in GST….common labour lie to miss out the fact that the tax take was neutral.
“Income tax cuts were covered by increase in GST….common labour lie to miss out the fact that the tax take was neutral.”
Except that all subsequent budget updates showed that GST tax take was under forecasts, ie, the tax cut was “forecast” to be “neutral”, but in reality never was (and no-one with half a brain believed that tax cuts during a recession, immediately followed by the worst natural disaster in this country’s history, would be “neutral”).
Also, you’ve brought into the lie that the GST increase offset the tax cuts.
But it didn’t – it covered about 80-90% of the loss in revenue, but the remainder was covered up by “greater macroeconomic effects”. In other words, the government “forecast” that because of their “amazing economic management” and the tax cuts, that the economy would grow faster than it otherwise would have, and that that extra growth would make up the remainder of the lost revenue from the tax cuts.
There is no detail or justification for how they arrived at the figures that they did. In other words, for all we know, is the government said to treasury “we need to make up a hole of about $300M a year, can you make up some bullshit to justify that?”.
But the economy is growing, inflation is VERY low….therefore they were right and proven to be so by subsequent events.
Would the economy be growing by as much without the tax cuts they implemented?
I would argue yes, on the basis that the current growth is driven almost entirely by immigration, eg GDP per capita is staying about the same, even if the total GDP is going up.
I don’t think the previously higher tax rates would have made any real impact on our current rate of immigration, and therefore growth.
Furthermore, the current low level of inflation is a concern for the economy, which is why the RBNZ has kept trying to increase it by cutting rates.
You can argue all you like, the facts are that taxes are an impediment to growth and always have been everywhere.
No, that’s not true at all.
Taxes pay for infrastructure like roads and electricity networks, and services like police and healthcare.
If you want to see a country without any taxes or government at all, go look at Somalia and see how a country without taxes has no impediments to growth at all.
I didn’t say no taxes, I said they are an impediment to growth.
The higher and more taxes the govt. takes, the lower the growth.
There is a minimum and any govt. should strive to reach it.
After all it is the people who earn the money and the govt. that takes it, in the proportion that they decide (sounds like an extortion racket, doesn’t it).
Businesses:
1. Find the customers/supply the service.
2. source the product/service the customer wants.
3. sets the price the customer will/can pay over and above costs.
No mention of govt. here in the process of earning money whether by wages or profits.
Taxes are TAKEN from this process for reasons determined by the govt.
I am saying, that the govt. should limit the justifications it uses to TAKE that money from the very people who earn it and VOTE for them.
“I didn’t say no taxes, I said they are an impediment to growth.
The higher and more taxes the govt. takes, the lower the growth.”
Again, not true. If a government took in $1 in taxes (which is not “no taxes”), then they would not be able to achieve much in the way of public infrastructure with it. But if they took in $1B in taxes, then they could. That infrastructure enabled by that tax take would promote growth.
So clearly we have a case where “higher taxes = higher growth”, so your statement is false.
“There is a minimum and any govt. should strive to reach it.”
Yes. Can you tell me what the ideal minimum is for New Zealand? Do you have any evidence that shows that National has put our taxes at the optimum level? Given that we have huge backlogs in our health system, cuts in funding for police and other social services – funding per capita has decreased in real dollar terms since National has been in power.
The rest of your comment is irrelevant to the topic at hand.
Labour has made some good strides in its intentions to push for a decent warrant of fitness scheme for houses, and it would be good to see way more focus on it.
Let’s face it, while the anti-Labour carping on this site does get tiresome, it’s true that this kind of tinkering will not achieve much in a comprehensively fucked market.
A WOF works two ways – it renegotiates the relationship between tenant and landlord to improve the standard of homes and, especially if combined with rent and other controls, deters speculators from ‘investing’.
The thing is, Labour’s plan is not mere tinkering, and it will achieve a lot. It’s a far cry from what we have now under the key regime. Funny you should say that “anti-Labour carping on this site does get tiresome” when you did just that yourself !!
This might be a bit nuanced for ya leftie, but it’s reasonable to constructively criticise, while at the very same time being annoyed by the Labour is completely fucked and evil carping brigade!
But then, it’s a dynamic that you must be rather fond of, given you seem to get into long exacerbating arguments with its antagonists.
Andrew little is on fire at last a real leader ,a prime minster in waiting
Who are the losers ?
Over leveraged property investors
Those who have bought recently
Land lords who going pay there rents
Developers
Overseas buyers
Real estate companies
House building industry won’t be able compeat with mass produced homes
Baby boomers
Between now and the election who will buy I think labour has just savataged the housing market
Winners
Society
Fletchers
Those yet to buy
Banks ?????sudject to mortgage defaulters
“Working with the private sector and experts in fields like prefabrication, we can build standalone homes for $500,000-$600,000 in Auckland, with apartments and town houses for less than $500,000”
Will Labour force private building companies to do this work? Where is the evidence that private companies want to work for government. So many questions . Why so little answers?
too many questions for people like yourself who can’t count to 2.
Some companies don’t want government contracts? You need to get out more.
This kitset, ( ie all materials from timber to windows to fittings) is $110k ex rotorua, its 96m2 house. A 150m2 house is $150k
http://lockwood.co.nz/ModernHomeBuildingPlans/tabid/103/agentType/View/ID/290/Quartz-kitset.aspx
labour and land and consents are more , but they can be standardised.