Why these five housing fixes?

For the past year we have been working hard to deliver a pilot housing development for Tamaki Makarau. Its housing for those working Kiwis who will never catch the property ladder. Through this mahi we know first hand there are more levers which can be pulled to deliver genuine and lasting housing affordability.  We have shared our learnings through our recent five key housing fixes blog posts.

With local government elections coming up later this year, and Central Government elections due next year, now is the perfect time to share our experiences, highlighting what is needed. Candidates for Auckland Mayor and also for Central Government have reached out to us asking what more can be done. This has inspired Forever Affordable Homes (FAH) to share our five top fixes to deliver affordable housing for Auckland, which has direct application throughout the country. 

In summary our five key fixes (linked to individual detailed blog posts) are:

1. Enable the collective housing representative body

2. Underwrite collective housing developments

3. Change the Cooperatives Companies Act to provide for housing

4. Establish and support Community Land Trusts (CLTs)

5. Ring fence a portion of density uplift for permanently affordable housing

Between 10-15% of Kiwis could be benefiting from wider application of the FAH method in the form of secure affordable homes. That is 750,000 of us! This number reflects the potential take up internationally. For example in Zurich, more people live in this form of housing than are owner occupiers. We recognise the FAH method offers part of an array of solutions needed to solve our housing crisis. This includes providing more housing choices, at different price points across the continuum/ecosystem. 

What is the current government doing?

FAH and its sector colleagues have been reaching out to the various players in Central Government including elected representatives. A number of briefings and meetings have been held including with Jan Tinetti MP. FAH and its sector colleagues identify as the ‘collective housing’ sector (see fix #1 blog for more detail on why).

Last year the Government outlined initially a draft in July 2021, then a final policy document outlining its intended approaches to deliver affordable housing. The draft contained no mention of the ownership types that make up the FAH method. Through the efforts of FAH, its sector colleagues and supporters, the final policy document did recognise collective housing and its potential contribution to the housing ecosystem. The policy statement indicates the government will work to remove barriers to the wider take up of collective housing options. 

Outlined in the image above is the fifth key focus area of the Government Policy Statement on Housing and Urban Development (GPS-HUD), relevant to our mahi.

Page 31 of the GPS-HUD document states:

Other community-led projects also have an important role to play. Collective housing approaches (including papakāinga, community land trusts, co-operatives and co‑housing) can play a role in providing alternative affordable options.

Since the release of the final policy document in September 2021 there has been silence from those within the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development. In the past six months our emerging collective housing sector not seen or heard from the relevant policy makers. An implementation plan is understood to be in development. If that is the case, it will include no contribution from those within the emerging sector.

There is LOTS to love about the Forever Affordable Homes method

Some of the benefits include that it:

1. Catches people before they slip into social housing need

2. Offers an aspirational stepping stone out of social housing before private renting

3. Can recycle subsidies once debts are paid off, enabling the method to replicate and scale

4. As part of an emerging sector, is largely able to be self reliant once established

5. Can drawn on many successful examples internationally (eg. supporting documentation, structures etc)

Forever Affordable Homes has outlined the five key fixes needed to enable a successful pilot to be delivered. We await the right political settings to enable this proven solution to flourish.

To help deliver proven retained affordable housing solutions ask the following candidates and elected representatives what they are doing on the 5 key fixes identified.

1. Megan Woods MP as current housing Minister

2. Chris Bishop MP as the newly appointed shadow housing Minister

3. David Parker MP as the Minister response for the Resource Management Act (relating to fix #5)

4. Housing spokespeople in minor parties who might help form a future government (eg. Marama Davidson from the Greens Party)

5. Your Mayoral candidates.