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Comment by 9q | Hacker News Reader

I'm from New Zealand and we are having the exact same problem in our largest city, Auckland.

It's now at about 20% Chinese population as well.

I have no problem with immigration and foreigners buying houses, but they are making it basically impossible for the average Kiwi to consider purchasing in Auckland, and it is somewhat of a problem when a single group has been allowed to purchase in such intensity in a single area.

The wider New Zealand population is quite angry about it, but the government seems to be denying a problem. The problem was they were happy taking in foreign money, with complete disregard for the inevitable consequences.

They are now going to be implementing much increased tax on foreign buyers to try and stop the problem.

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I'm from New Zealand and we are having the exact same problem in our largest city, Auckland.

The thing is it's happening everywhere in NZ. The provinces are getting worse as well. For reference, a median multiple of 3 is considered affordable.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&o...

Not a single region in NZ is affordable - and this is from 2012. It's only gotten worse.

Melbourne resident here. Same problem and real estate agents are playing along because they make more money that way. Politicians will say and do what has become the norm, "we strongly believe that the average Australian needs to be able to afford their own homes" but that's about it. I realize its not an easy problem to solve but it is also one that will not go away if you ignore it.

Its a very simple problem to solve, make property something only citizens (or at the least permanent residents) can buy.

No offense but if it was that simple, don't you think the government would've done it already? The Chinese cash looks good and shows growth on paper so politicians and bank managers can show great numbers in the short term. It's only in the long term that you'll destabilize the economy and do irreversible damage with money laundering behavior.

No offense but if it was that simple, don't you think the government would've done it already?

Governments will do what's in their best interest. You literally pointed it out yourself in the next paragraph..

The biggest reason why these are preferred place for Chinese is that they are immigration country without extradition treaty with China. It is not even about investment. They can lose 50% money and still be happy to do it.

I've just moved to Auckland from Vancouver, and yeah it's pretty much the exact same thing happening in both cities. It's a bit bizarre to see and live here

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