Nats contradicting each other on panicked infrastructure policy
From Newshub:
Social issues
housing
Al Jazeera on NZ homeless – watch it and weep
Al Jazeera: Once a pioneer of the social welfare state, New Zealand now has over 40,000 people who are homeless, forced to live in their cars and in garages as a result of rapid house price and rent rises and a shortage of social housing. Al Jazeera … charts the country’s fall from and egalitarian society to one with deep divisions of wealth
Housing dreams should not be blocked
Unions Auckland’s Housing Action Committee is planning to highlight the homeless crisis tomorrow by protesting at a Block NZ’s open home to highlight the absurdity of the current housing market.
Government puts 15% tax on foreign house buyers
No, not our government. Though as the average NZ house price just hit $600,000, and Auckland just short of $1m, they really should.
Meth Fries Housing NZ’s Brains
Housing NZ has admitted that it is evicting tenants when only tiny trace amounts of meth are found on the property. It further admits that the testing regime is not fit for purpose. But, hey, they have the power to make people homeless and they’re not going to let fairness or common sense get in the way of their moral panic.
When did the War on Drugs become the War on the Poor?
Listen to Nick Smith trying to defend fudged foreign ownership data
Anyone who believes the Nats’ figures needs to listen to yesterday’s interview – Why won’t Nick Smith answer this one simple question? Excellent work from Garner.
The Unitary Plan will not solve the Housing Crisis
The Unitary Plan has been described as a panacea for the housing crisis by the Government. But will it actually address this most acute of issues?
We can’t say we weren’t warned
When the Auckland housing bubble bursts a lot of people are going to lose a lot of money. They won’t be able to say they weren’t warned.
The Ray White – China deal
Real Estate agent Ray White has formed a partnership with China’s Lianjia to market NZ houses to about 260 million Chinese buyers. They say it’s the government’s problem – and they’re right.
Unitary Plan – affordability requirements removed
What are the Nats doing removing a proposed requirement for affordable housing – exactly the housing that Auckland desperately needs!?
The Greens take a stand on the housing bubble
“I want to be very clear that we are talking about a responsible, carefully managed reduction in house prices over a period of time like 10 to 15 years.”
Metiria Turei
Metiria speaks the unspeakable – house prices should fall
Not often you’ll catch Metiria Turei and Don Brash in agreement!
Who could build social housing?
The plan to have the private sector build social housing appears to be a flop. We need a large, well resourced organisation to take on the task of building these desperately needed houses. Wherever will we find one?
WINZ sends families to live in garages
The government is demolishing and selling state house while WINZ sends families to live in garages. This is New Zealand in the Eighth Year of the Brighter Future.
Submit to the Cross-Party Homelessness Inquiry
Auckland without workers
The unaffordability of Auckland housing is now seriously impacting even moderately well paid professions. As these trends continue, how is Auckland going to cope without without workers?
Nats abandon social housing target
As part of their “comprehensive” response to the housing crisis, the Nats are backing off their promise to increase the number of social housing places. Great news for those families sleeping in cars tonight.
Labour’s housing crisis interactive
Go to Labour’s Housing Map interactive and enter your address to get information on housing trends in your area.
Public invited to have say on homelessness
The Māori Party have joined Labour and the Greens’ Cross-party Homelessness Inquiry, which is now asking for public input into the crisis including from people directly affected.
Do you pray to take on crushing debt for the rest of your life?
Pathetic tinkering with loan limits does nothing realistic for first home buyers, but it does add more fuel to the debt fire. We need to actually build some affordable houses. If only there was a party that would do that…
Nats on HNZ dividend – Yes! No! Maybe!
That’s three positions in 2 days. Stay tuned to see what these headless chooks come up with tomorrow!
A tale of two housing policies – Steven Joyce writing National’s on Twitter
In some kind of panic over Labour’s housing policy package, Steven Joyce was writing Nat policy on Twitter yesterday. The promise to forego 2 years of HNZ dividend appears to have been made up on the fly.
Andrew Little’s speech: Backing the Kiwi dream of home ownership
Text from Andrew Little’s speech today given in New Lynn to announce Labour’s latest housing policy.
Labour announcement: Labour will require Housing Corporation to use dividends to build state houses
Andrew Little has announced at the Labour Party’s 100 year special conference that Labour in Government will require Housing Corporation to instead of paying dividends to instead build houses.
Reserve Bank gives Key the fingers on housing crisis
In The Herald Liam Dann asks – Did the Reserve Bank just give two fingers to the Prime Minister?. That would be a “yes”.
The housing crisis and Key’s combustible pants
2007 Key vs 2016 Key on the housing crisis. Someone is telling lies!
Housing bubble inflating faster – Key’s panic now obvious
The housing bubble is inflating faster than ever, and Key is visibly panicking. His political problem is insoluble and his electoral problem is about to get worse.
A week at Te Puea Marae
Unlike our “government”, Te Puea Marae is trying to do something practical for the homeless. Madeleine Chapman spent a week volunteering there, and wrote about it for The Spinoff. Note that The Warehouse will match donations made through Spinoff.
National to seize privately owned land
National is now proposing to extinguish private property rights and seize land. Cue political and media outrage? Yeah right.
Billion dollar boondoggle
In an effort to be seen to be doing something about a housing crisis that they say doesn’t exist, the Nats have offered to lend councils $1 Billion that they can already borrow. Homeless families will also be offered a free deckchair on the Titanic to re-arrange as they please.
Another day at Te Puea Marae
An update on Te Puea Marae, a homeless teen cancer sufferer, and how to help.
Guest post: Corie Haddock on the homeless crisis
Co chair of the New Zealand Coalition to end homelessness Corie Haddock writes about the causes and implications of New Zealand’s homelessness crisis.
Good morning to the “Park up for homes” folks
A very sincere good morning to the “Park up for homes” folks who have just spent the night in their cars, protesting in support of the homeless.
Housing policy omnishambles rolls on
The government that will pay you $5000 to leave Auckland and $3000 to move to Auckland has been selling state houses so recklessly that it is now considering building temporary ones. Headless chickens make more sense.
National is missing Cameron Slater
The ham fisted attack on Hurimoana Dennis by Paula Bennett’s office must make National yearn for the heady days when Cameron Slater was in charge of their smears.
The ghost house epidemic and the invisible hand
Last year there were officially 22,000 unoccupied properties in Auckland. This year 33,000 are officially classified as empty. “Auckland’s 6.6 per cent vacancy rate is higher than either Sydney (5.2 per cent) or Melbourne (4.8 per cent), where there has been an uproar over “ghost houses” deliberately left empty by speculators trading on a soaring market”. This is madness.